Beijing ranked 5th on a list rating cities across the world in terms of appeal to talent, according to the Global City Talent Retention Index 2025 released at the China-Europe Talent Forum 2025 in Madrid, Spain in late September.  

Beijing was  the only Chinese city to rank in the top 10 for six consecutive years, according to the index, which was released by the Beijing Institute of Talent Development Strategy (BITS). 

Talent retention capability is a new concept put forth by the BITS with the aim of pushing for changes in city managers’ attitude toward talent. The index is used to measure a city’s ability to attract and keep talent, reflecting the degree of connection between talent and the city.  

Based on an indicator system, the talent retention capability of key global cities is calculated to form an index and ranking. Since its release in 2020, the index report has become a mirror reflecting global talent flow and provided an important reference to cities that strive to attract more talent. 

The index measures the development environment and attraction for talent of 125 cities, in 45 countries, from six fields: economy, innovation, culture and openness, environment and health, social welfare, and life quality.  

According to the comprehensive score, the top 10 cities in 2025 are New York, San Francisco, Boston, Paris, Beijing, London, Sydney, Singapore, Shanghai, and Seoul. New York has topped the list for three consecutive years, while Sydney and Shanghai have entered the top 10 for the first time. Beijing is the only major Asian city to rank among the top five. 

Cities in North America and Europe still lead in 2025. Among the top 50 cities, 18 are from North America, 17 from Europe, 12 from Asia, two from Oceania, and one from South America. Asian cities are on the rise. In the past year, about 33.6 percent of cities worldwide have achieved improvement in ranking. The proportion of Asian cities that have improved their ranking has reached 35.6 percent, surpassing that of Europe, 30.3 percent, and North America, 30.4 percent. 

Beijing stands out in terms of innovation potential and social welfare, ranking first and third globally, respectively. Leveraging its outstanding performance in scientific and technological innovation platforms, technological production, and top scientists, Beijing has been unleashing its potential for innovation and displaying its advantage in attracting and gathering talent. 

The index report also focuses on the impact of the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) on a city’s talent retention capability. It shows that scientific and technological innovation activities relying on cutting-edge Al technologies could effectively improve the performance of a city in talent retention.  

The top 30 cities on the Global City Talent Retention Index 2025 account for about 40 percent of patents approved, AI-themed papers published, and the most prolific and highly cited scientists worldwide. 

The index report said there are five major clusters of AI research collaboration, which are in China, the United States, Europe, Japan, and India. Beijing is a leading hub for AI scientists globally, it noted, adding that the capital city has been collaborating closely with cities, such as Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, and Singapore, in AI research.