Blog

Eli Lilly top 2026 Global Pharmaceutical Innovation & Invention Index

May 19, 2026

Eli Lilly First Ever Company to Top Both Rankings in the 2026 Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index

Innovation Index sees notable climbs from Sanofi and GSK while Novartis marks stand out rise in Invention Index rankings

Genmab enters Index for the first time

First-ever launch of global disruptive pioneers, highlighting the promise of early-stage / pre-commercialization companies

See the full results at https://www.ideapharma.com/pii/report/global/

LONDON, UK — May 19th 2026 — The 2026 Global Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index (PIII) has today been released, revealing the companies driving the next era of pharmaceutical innovation and invention through a combination of scientific ambition, recognized in strategic partnerships and pipeline enriching discovery, late-stage execution, and commercial impact. Now in its 15th year, the Index remains the industry’s longest-running independent benchmark of pharmaceutical innovation performance. 

This year’s Index identifies Eli Lilly and Company as the leading pharmaceutical innovator globally, ranking first on both the Innovation and Invention Indexes for the first time in PIII history. The achievement reflects Lilly’s continued momentum in cardiometabolic health, led by Mounjaro® (tirzepatide) and Zepbound® (tirzepatide), alongside a rapidly advancing pipeline spanning cancer, neuroscience and genetic medicine. 

“What makes this recognition meaningful is what it’s actually measuring — not just the breadth of a pipeline, but how effectively a company turns scientific promise into medicines that reach people,”

says Elizabeth Van Sant Hoffman, Senior Vice President, Portfolio Management and Clinical Design and Delivery at Eli Lilly and Company.

“That translation is hard. It requires discipline, prioritization, and a willingness to make bold bets on novel biology. Receiving this honor for a second consecutive year tells us our approach is working, and it challenges us to keep raising the bar.”

The 2026 PIII findings also underscore a broader shift across the industry; companies that successfully translate platform science into sustained regulatory and commercial execution are increasingly separating themselves from their peers.

President, Strategic Consulting & Analytics IDEA Pharma Division, Jacqui Poot commented,

“The 2026 Index highlights a structural shift in pharmaceutical innovation. Lilly’s platform approach, Sanofi’s launch‑driven engine, and AstraZeneca’s sustained oncology delivery all demonstrate that innovation today is about alignment, linking discovery, clinical execution and commercial impact. Top-performing companies deliver innovation today while building what comes next for tomorrow.” 

Innovation and invention increasingly converging

The 2026 Index shows a growing convergence between near-term commercial success and long-term invention capability among top-performing companies.

Merck & Co. retained second place on the Innovation Index while rising to fifth on the Invention Index, driven by the continued expansion of Keytruda® (pembrolizumab) and progress from newer assets including Winrevair™ (sotatercept-csrk) and enlicitide decanoate. AstraZeneca ranked sixth in Innovation and second in Invention, reflecting continued strength in oncology through Enhertu® (trastuzumab deruxtecan), Datroway® (datopotamab deruxtecan), Imfinzi® (durvalumab), and Tagrisso® (osimertinib). 

Regeneron climbed to fifth in Innovation and third in Invention, supported by the continued expansion of Dupixent® (dupilumab) and the company’s exceptional pipeline breadth, spanning across gene therapy, immunology, and rare disease. GSK also posted one of the year’s greatest improvements, rising to fourth place in both rankings following major advances in oncology, respiratory, infectious diseases and vaccines, alongside sustained investment in novel pipeline assets. 

Sanofi also shows a dramatic rise to third on the Innovation Index, the largest jump within the Top 10, reflecting multiple approvals both by the FDA and EMA. Sanofi management framed 2025 as a year of profitable growth, largely driven by Dupixent® (dupilumab), multiple regulatory approvals, positive Phase 3 readouts and successful launches, with both sales and earnings increasing alongside continued investment in R&D.

Novartis climbed 12 places to enter the Top 10, reaching 10th position in the Invention Index, reflecting one of the strongest years of pipeline execution across large-cap pharma, supported by focused investment across cardiovascular, renal and metabolic disease, immunology, neuroscience and oncology.

China’s influence continues to grow

A major theme of the 2026 Index is the growing influence of China in global pharmaceutical innovation. Companies, including Hengrui and BeOne, were both ranked in the Index, demonstrating China’s increasing role as a source of both scientific invention and late-stage innovation capability. 

“The launch of the annual China Pharmaceutical Innovation and Invention Index last year recognizes a structural shift in global R&D. The re‑confirmed performance of companies such as Hengrui and BeOne in this year’s Global Index highlights China’s growing role as a source of both late‑stage execution and invention depth, reinforcing why independent, global benchmarking is now more important than ever.” commented Jacqui Poot.

New entrants and emerging innovators

The 2026 Index also recognizes first-time entry for Genmab, with the company successfully evolving from a royalty-led biotech into a more commercially active oncology innovator, with revenue growing 19–21% across consecutive periods. This growth was supported by Darzalex® (daratumumab) royalties and an expanding proprietary portfolio.

In addition, the Index highlights a group of “Disruptive Pioneers” for the first time – emerging biotechnology companies developing breakthrough therapeutic modalities. Featured companies include:

Revolution Medicines (RAS-targeted oncology)
Parabilis Medicines (ultra-tunable peptide therapeutics)
Monte Rosa Therapeutics (molecular glue degraders)
Kyverna Therapeutics (CAR-T for chronic autoimmune disease)
Allogenetics (allogeneic cell therapies)
Compass Pathways (psychedelic-assisted psychiatry)
Beam Therapeutics (base editing)
Intellia Therapeutics (in vivo CRISPR gene editing)
Tune Therapeutics (epigenome editing)
Haya Therapeutics (lncRNA-targeting precision medicines)

These companies were recognized for advancing novel scientific approaches with the potential to redefine future standards of care across oncology, genetic medicine, psychiatry, immunology, and transplantation.

Chief Medical and Innovation Officer, Dr. Alexander Gray comments, “With the introduction of the global disruptive pioneers, we want to recognize stand-out areas of innovation for companies with assets in clinical development whose scale would preclude them from entering our Innovation and Invention Indexes but have demonstrated great potential in developing breakthrough medicines to patients. We are excited to see how these companies – and their assets –progress.”

Full results from the Innovation and Invention Index and whitepaper can be found at https://www.ideapharma.com/pii/report/global/

Ends

About the Global Pharmaceutical Innovation Index

The Pharmaceutical Innovation Index seeks to answer the provocative question, ‘If two pharma companies were given the same molecule in early phase, which of the two would be better in developing and launching it?” The Innovation Index ranks companies utilizing a range of clinical, regulatory, and commercial metrics, ranging from the corporate level down to individual product decisions and outcomes.

This 15th annual Index provides a systematic and objective assessment of how well the top 30 companies perform in bringing new medicines to market and commercializing them successfully. The data used in the Index are used for descriptive and inferential statistical analysis. This has formed the bases of the recently published paper in the Journal of Pharmaceutical Innovation: Identification and Predictive Analysis of Revenue Determinants in the Pharma Industry: A Longitudinal Analysis of Financial, Regulatory and Pipeline Data. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12247-025-09975-6

About the Global Pharmaceutical Invention Index

Released for the first time in 2019 and now in its eighth year, the Pharmaceutical Invention Index examines pipeline invention and novelty by taking a focused look at the breadth and depth of novel agents currently being developed within the top 30 pharma pipelines. The Invention Index provides a more forward-looking view of who is developing medicines that matter, embracing science and innovations in R&D.

About the Global Disruptive Pioneers

Introduced for the first time in 2026, the global Disruptive Pioneers are companies not yet generating significant commercial revenue, but with breakthrough science and the potential to bring meaningfully different innovative products to market. The 2026 Disruptive Pioneers were selected by the IDEA Pharma team in a non-ranked order, based on factors indicative of innovation potential, including dealmaking success, progress on clinical development and regulatory milestones, and therapeutic platform novelty.

About IDEA Pharma, a Division of SAI MedPartners

IDEA Pharma, a Division of SAI MedPartners, is a global practice, recognized as the leading experts in pharmaceutical innovation, path-to-market strategy, and strategic positioning. IDEA Pharma was acquired by SAI MedPartners in November 2024, and as part of the wider portfolio of companies, is able to offer additional capabilities, including Market Research, Competitor Benchmarking, and Competitor Intelligence.  IDEA Pharma and SAI MedPartners have a global practice with offices in London (UK), Reading (US), Waltham (US) and Shanghai (China). 

To learn more about IDEA Pharma, visit https://www.ideapharma.com, https://www.sai-med.com or follow on LinkedIn, YouTube