Undoubtedly, the United States is one of the most advanced countries in the field of science and innovation. The open and supportive environment in which scientists conduct their work attracts the best talent from around the world to the United States. The country’s current excellence in scientific research is based on the opportunities created after the Second World War, among which generous public funding of domestic innovation development is prominent.

Although Asian powers such as China have become prominent players in the field of scientific progress, the case of the United States is of great interest, as many countries around the world have adopted the American model for the development of science.
It is noteworthy that at the beginning of the 21st century, the US accounted for just over 40% of all global research and development (R&D) spending. However, in 2018 the state spent 2.84% of its GDP on R&D, which is not a record – Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Japan, South Korea and Israel have larger shares. But, for example, in terms of research costs (per researcher), the United States accounted for 359.9 thousand dollars in the same year. The volume of peer-reviewed research publications also gives an idea of ​​R&D and technology activity – in 2019 it was 422,808, only China was higher. Approximately 88,000 patents are issued per year.Financing Features
The combination of funding (both private and public) and education in the United States is a winning formula that still attracts researchers from all over the world to the state.

The government is the largest funder of basic research, accounting for 44% of the total. Government agencies such as the US National Science Foundation require researchers to ensure that their proposals and grant applications are of social benefit and have a broad impact. The priority is to obtain new knowledge about certain processes.

While the federal government and its public institutions determine the priorities and directions of development, the implementation of the designated programs falls on the private sector – this is mainly industry and universities. This factor explains why most of all American R&D is concentrated in the private sector of the economy – more than 70% of all funds allocated from various sources are mastered here.

It is noteworthy that there is a separation of functions between government, private industry, universities and non-profit institutions, and in the US, development is more important than applied and basic research. Nevertheless, a fairly rational system of R&D financing has developed in the country.