The report released on Jan. 11 said there is a sharp decline in the number of world-leading American scientists from 36,599 in 2020 to 31,781 in 2024, reducing its global share from 33% to 27%, the South China Morning Post reported.

In contrast, China’s numbers jumped from 18,805 to 32,511 during the same period, raising its share from 17% to 28%.

The Chinese Academy of Sciences, the world’s largest scientific organization, led the rankings with 3,615 top scientists, far exceeding Harvard University’s 1,683 and Stanford University’s 1,208.

Outside of China and the U.S., Germany’s figures remained stable, while Britain, France, Japan, and Australia reported declines.

The study defined high-level science and technology talent as researchers publishing influential papers in top international journals.

“Over the past five years the global landscape of high-level science and technology talent has undergone profound changes,” Wu Dengsheng, founder of Dongbi Data and a professor at Shenzhen University, said.

“China and the U.S. are consistently dominating, but with diametrically opposed trends.”

A separate 2023 report by the Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China said the Asian giant accounted for nearly a third of all academic papers published in leading international journals in 2022, surpassing the U.S. for the first time.

Dongbi Data introduced its Global Top Journals List Across All Disciplines to rank academic journals internationally and reduce reliance on western benchmark claims and establish China’s own evaluation systems.

Li Gang, dean of the Wuhan Data Intelligence Research Institute at Wuhan University, said building a Chinese journal rating system is crucial for enhancing the global recognition of the country’s academic publications. He added that such an initiative would strengthen China’s narrative power in international academia and support its scientific and technological development.