Ireland is one of the most innovative countries in the world for providing COVID-19 solutions, according to a new study.
The rankings, compiled by StartupBlink in collaboration with the UN's Health Innovation Index, placed Ireland sixth in the world for its innovative solutions.
The study relates to how businesses in individual countries are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The US topped the list for innovation and only Canada, Estonia, Switzerland and Israel placed above Ireland.
Dublin also ranked 13th among the world's most innovative cities during the Coronavirus pandemic in a list dominated by American cities.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, San Francisco topped the list, with Boston and New York rounding off the top three. Toronto, Milan, London, Seattle, Zurich, Moscow and Paris complete the top ten.
Coronavirus Innovation Map- Global ranking, by city / cluster, of innovative solutions created in response to Covid-19. Tel Aviv at #11 @StartupBlink https://t.co/jiKpi8ULLB#coronavirus#covid19response#covid19 #flattenthecurve#digitalhealth#bestofus pic.twitter.com/udQu9ypM50
— levshapiro (@levshapiro) April 16, 2020
Enterprise Ireland, a government body that supports the development of Irish businesses, said that more than 100 of its client companies are responding to the COVID-19 crisis with innovative solutions.
Medtronic, for example, is exponentially increasing its production of life-saving ventilators in its manufacturing facility in Galway.
Read more: Medtronic Ireland set to double production of life-saving ventilators to combat coronavirus
The medical device manufacturers are headquartered in Dublin and plans to make more than 25,000 ventilators over the next six months. It has already upped production from 300 ventilators per week in March to 400 per week now and intends to increase those figures to 700 a week by the end of May and 1,000 per week by June.
Medtronic also recently shared design specifications for the Puritan Bennett 560 - one of its ventilators - with other manufacturers to help overcome the global shortage of ventilators.
Akara Robotics, meanwhile, developed a virus-killing robot that can disinfect hospitals remove COVID-19 from surfaces. The Dublin startup company designed the robot to make hospital cleaning more efficient and safer for hospital staff.
Robot Violet uses ultraviolet to break down the virus's DNA and Akara Robotics committed to making 50 robots for Irish hospitals around the country.
Read more: Dublin scientists develop Covid-19 virus killing robot
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