Skye Gould/Business Insider
Silicon Valley may be home to huge tech companies like Google and Facebook, but the San Francisco metro area isn't the most innovative city in the world, $4 compiled by data firm 2thinknow.
Instead, the top spot belongs to Tokyo, Japan, according to the 2018 Innovation Cities Index. $4 that an Asian city has claimed the title as world's most innovative city since 2thinknow first started compiling the annual rankings in 2007.
Of the top 50, the city with the biggest jump in the rankings was Austin, Texas, which moved up 18 spots from 2017 to claim No. 29. Meanwhile, Barcelona dropped to No. 30 in the index, a 17-spot decrease from last year.
Cities are assessed based on $4 of their industries and economy, and $4 of innovation. However, the firm's data analysts compile each city's index score, out of 60, from $4: cultural assets, human infrastructure, and networked markets.
Here is the 2018 ranking of the 50 most innovative cities in the world: