Air and spacecraft and related machinery, manufacture of: This industry includes the manufacture of airplanes for the transport of goods or passengers, for use by defense forces, for sport, or for other purposes; helicopters; gliders and hang gliders; dirigibles and hot air balloons; parts and accessories of the aircraft of this class; ground-flying trainers; spacecraft and launch vehicles, satellites, planetary probes, orbital stations, shuttles; intercontinental ballistic missiles; overhaul and conversion of aircraft or aircraft engines; and aircraft seats.

Chemicals and chemical products, manufacture of: This industry includes the transformation of organic and inorganic raw materials by a chemical process and the formation of products.

Computer, electronic, and optical products, manufacture of: This industry includes the manufacture of computers, computer peripherals, communications equipment, and similar electronic products, as well as the manufacture of components for such products. Also included is the manufacture of consumer electronics; measuring, testing, navigating, and control equipment; irradiation, electromedical, and electrotherapeutic equipment; optical instruments and equipment; and magnetic and optical media.

Company or firm: A business entity that is either in a single location with no subsidiaries or branches or the topmost parent of a group of subsidiaries or branches.

Electrical equipment, manufacture of: This industry includes the manufacture of products that generate, distribute, and use electrical power. Also included is the manufacture of electrical lighting, signaling equipment, and electric household appliances.

European Union (EU): The EU comprises 27 member nations: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden. The United Kingdom withdrew from the EU on 1 February 2020. Unless otherwise noted, data on the EU include all 27 member countries.

Global value chain (GVC): A chain of activities to produce goods and services that may extend across firms or countries. These activities include design, production, marketing and sales, logistics, and maintenance.

Gross domestic product (GDP): The market value of all final goods and services produced within a country for a given period of time.

Information technology (IT) and information services: This industry is the composite of International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) sectors 62 (computer programming, consultancy, and related activities) and 63 (information service activities). ISIC 62 includes the following activities of providing expertise in the field of information technologies: writing, modifying, testing, and supporting software; planning and designing computer systems that integrate computer hardware, software, and communication technologies; on-site management and operation of clients’ computer systems and/or data processing facilities; and other professional and technical computer-related activities. ISIC 63 includes the activities of Web search portals, data processing and hosting activities, and other activities that primarily supply information.

Knowledge- and technology-intensive (KTI) industries: Industries classified by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) as high R&D intensive and medium-high R&D intensive industries. The OECD defines R&D intensity as the ratio of an industry’s business R&D expenditures to its value added.

Machinery and equipment not elsewhere classified (nec), manufacture of: This industry includes the manufacture of machinery and equipment that act independently on materials either mechanically or thermally or perform operations on materials (such as handling, spraying, weighing, or packing), including their mechanical components that produce and apply force, and any specially manufactured primary parts. This includes the manufacture of fixed and mobile or handheld devices, regardless of whether they are designed for industrial, building, and civil engineering, agricultural, or home use. Also included is the manufacture of special equipment for passenger or freight transport within demarcated premises.

Medical and dental instruments and supplies, manufacture of: This industry includes the manufacture of laboratory apparatus, surgical and medical instruments, surgical appliances and supplies, dental equipment and supplies, orthodontic goods, and dentures and orthodontic appliances. Also included is the manufacture of medical, dental, and similar furniture, where the additional specific functions determine the purpose of the product, such as dentist chairs with built-in hydraulic functions.

Motor vehicles, trailers, and semi-trailers, manufacture of: This industry includes the manufacture of motor vehicles for transporting passengers or freight. Also included is the manufacture of various parts and accessories, as well as the manufacture of trailers and semi-trailers.

Pharmaceuticals (manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations): This industry includes the manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations. Also included is the manufacture of medicinal chemical and botanical products.

Railroad, military vehicles, and transport not elsewhere classified (nec), manufacture of: This industry is the composite of International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) 302 (manufacture of railway locomotives and rolling stock), ISIC 304 (manufacture of military fighting vehicles), and ISIC 309 (transport equipment nec). ISIC 302 includes the manufacture of electric, diesel, steam, and other rail locomotives; self-propelled railway or tramway coaches, vans, and trucks and maintenance and service vehicles; railway and tramway rolling stock, not self-propelled; specialized parts of railway and tramway locomotives and of rolling stock; mechanical and electromechanical signaling, safety, and traffic control equipment for railways, tramways, inland waterways, roads, parking facilities, airfields, etc.; mining locomotives and mining rail cars; and railway car seats. ISIC 304 includes the manufacture of tanks, armored amphibious military vehicles, and other military fighting vehicles. ISIC 309 includes the manufacture of transport equipment other than motor vehicles and rail, water, air, and space transport equipment and military vehicles. It includes manufacture of motorcycles, bicycles and invalid carriages, hand-propelled vehicles, and vehicles drawn by animals.

Scientific research and development (R&D): This industry includes the activities of three types of R&D: (1) basic research: experimental or theoretical work undertaken primarily to acquire new knowledge of the underlying foundations of phenomena and observable facts, without particular application or use in view; (2) applied research: original investigation undertaken in order to acquire new knowledge, directed primarily toward a specific practical aim or objective; and (3) experimental development: systematic work, drawing on existing knowledge gained from research and/or practical experience, directed to producing new materials, products, and devices; installing new processes, systems, and services; and improving substantially those already produced or installed.

Software publishing: This industry includes publishing of ready-made (non-customized) software: operating systems, business and other applications, and computer games for all platforms.

Value added: A measure of industry production that is the amount contributed by a country, an industry, or other entity to the value of the good or service. It excludes the country, industry, or other entity’s purchases of domestic and imported supplies and inputs from other countries, industries, firms, and other entities.

Venture capital: Venture capitalists manage the pooled investments of others (typically wealthy investors, investment banks, and other financial institutions) in a professionally managed fund. In return, venture capitalists receive ownership equity and almost always participate in managerial decisions.

ABS: Annual Business Survey

ACS: American Community Survey

AI: artificial intelligence

BEA: Bureau of Economic Analysis

BLS: Bureau of Labor Statistics

BRDIS: Business R&D and Innovation Survey

BRDS: Business Research and Development Survey

COVID-19: coronavirus disease 2019

DOE: Department of Energy

EU: European Union

GDP: gross domestic product

GPT: general purpose technology

GVC: global value chain

ICT: information and communications technologies

IP5: forum of the five largest intellectual property offices in the world

IT: information technology

KTI: knowledge- and technology-intensive

M&A: mergers and acquisitions

MSA: metropolitan statistical area

NCSES: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics

nec: not elsewhere classified

NITRD: Networking and Information Technology Research and Development

OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

OIS: Office of Immigration Statistics

R&D: research and development

TiVA: Trade in Value Added

S&E: science and engineering

STEM: science, technology, engineering, and mathematics

STW: skilled technical workforce

USDA: Department of Agriculture

USPTO: United States Patent and Trademark Office

WIPO: World Intellectual Property Organization