GITNUXREPORT 2026

Competition Statistics

Competition varies widely across industries, from highly concentrated to fiercely open.

Alexander Schmidt

Alexander Schmidt

Research Analyst specializing in technology and digital transformation trends.

First published: Feb 13, 2026

Our Commitment to Accuracy

Rigorous fact-checking · Reputable sources · Regular updatesLearn more

Key Statistics

Statistic 1

SAT 2023: 1.9M test-takers, avg score 1028 down 25 pts from 2020 amid test-optional competition

Statistic 2

QS World Univ Rankings 2025: MIT #1, Imperial #2, Oxford #3, 1,500 unis from 100 locations competing

Statistic 3

Nobel Prizes 1901-2023: USA 411 awards, UK 138, Physics competition 227 laureates total

Statistic 4

PISA 2022: Singapore math 575 pts #1, USA 465 #28, 690K students from 81 countries

Statistic 5

IMO 2024: USA team 1st gold medals total 141/210 max, China 2nd 135, 609 participants 112 nations

Statistic 6

PhD production 2022: USA 55K STEM doctorates, China 70K, EU 120K total amid global race

Statistic 7

Patent grants 2023: China 1.58M, USA 325K, Japan 200K, EPO 193K utility models

Statistic 8

h-index top: Harvard 1,200 avg faculty, Stanford 950, competition via 100K citations/year dept

Statistic 9

ARWU 2024: Harvard #1, Stanford #2, 2,000 unis scored on 6 indicators Nobel/pubs

Statistic 10

Intraspecific competition for resources in Darwin's finches on Galapagos reduced beak size variance by 10% during 1977 drought

Statistic 11

Interspecific competition between lions and hyenas in Serengeti: hyenas steal 60% lion kills, lions 25% hyena kills annually

Statistic 12

Plant competition: Arabidopsis thaliana root allocation shifts 30% more to competitive neighbors via auxin signaling

Statistic 13

Coral reef competition: Acropora corals outcompete Pocillopora via overgrowth at 2.5cm/month in Moorea

Statistic 14

Insect competition: Ladybugs reduce aphid populations 40% faster in monocultures vs mixed ant-ladybug competition

Statistic 15

Fish competition: Tilapia in aquaculture grow 25% slower with 3+ densities due to agonistic behavior

Statistic 16

Bird competition: Eurasian jays cache 15% fewer acorns when observed by competitors

Statistic 17

Bacteria competition: E.coli evolves 50% faster anti-phage defenses in high-density chemostats over 100 generations

Statistic 18

Tree competition: Canopy trees suppress understory saplings 70% via shading in tropical forests

Statistic 19

Mammal competition: Wolves reduce coyote density 80% in Yellowstone post-reintroduction 1995-2023

Statistic 20

Fortune 500 2023: Walmart #1 revenue $648B, 29% profit margin gap to competitors like Amazon at 6%

Statistic 21

Global beer market: AB InBev 27% share 2023, Heineken 9%, competition via 2,800 breweries worldwide

Statistic 22

Fast food U.S.: McDonald's 43% burger share 2023, Burger King 15%, 50B burgers sold annually

Statistic 23

Hotel industry: Marriott 17% global rooms 2024, Hilton 14%, Airbnb disrupting 8% occupancy share

Statistic 24

Semiconductor competition: TSMC 60% foundry share Q1 2024, Samsung 13%, Intel 9% amid $500B investments

Statistic 25

E-commerce: Amazon 37.6% U.S. share 2023, Walmart+ 6.4%, Shopify enabling 29% SMB sales

Statistic 26

Airline profits: Delta $4.6B net 2023, United $2.6B, low-cost Southwest $465M amid fuel competition

Statistic 27

Soft drinks: Coca-Cola 48% U.S. market 2023, Pepsi 21.5%, energy drinks Red Bull 43% subcategory

Statistic 28

Apparel: Nike 28% U.S. athletic footwear 2023, Adidas 10%, Shein fast-fashion 20% online share

Statistic 29

Social media ad spend competition: Meta 21.3% global $200B 2023, Google 28.6%, TikTok 10% growth

Statistic 30

In 2023, the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) for the U.S. airline industry measured 2,492 points, indicating high concentration and reduced competition among the top four carriers controlling 80% of domestic market share

Statistic 31

Global smartphone market competition saw Samsung holding 22.9% share in Q2 2024, down from 24.1% in 2023 due to rising Chinese competitors like Xiaomi at 14.8%

Statistic 32

In the U.S. retail sector, Walmart captured 8.5% of total grocery sales in 2023 amid fierce competition from Amazon Fresh which grew 12% YoY to 2.1% share

Statistic 33

EU banking competition HHI averaged 1,800 in 2022, with top 5 banks holding 45% assets, pressured by fintech entrants like Revolut serving 8 million users

Statistic 34

Indian telecom competition post-Jio entry reduced ARPU by 25% from 2016-2023, with market share split: Jio 40.1%, Airtel 33.2%, Vi 17.5%

Statistic 35

U.S. auto industry competition saw Tesla's EV market share rise to 55% in 2023 from 49% in 2022, squeezing GM and Ford combined to 30%

Statistic 36

Cloud computing competition: AWS 31%, Azure 25%, Google Cloud 11% global share in 2024, with IaaS spend hitting $195B

Statistic 37

Streaming video competition in U.S.: Netflix 21%, Disney+ 15%, Prime Video 14% subscribers in 2023, amid churn rates averaging 8%

Statistic 38

Pharmaceutical competition: Pfizer's Lipitor generics eroded 90% branded sales post-patent 2011, saving U.S. consumers $150B by 2023

Statistic 39

ride-hailing competition: Uber 72% U.S. market share in 2023 vs Lyft 28%, with 1.2B rides completed globally by Uber

Statistic 40

In 2022 U.S. presidential election, Democrats raised $1.6B vs Republicans $1.1B in competitive fundraising race

Statistic 41

UK 2024 general election: Labour won 412 seats vs Conservative 121, voter turnout 59.9% lowest since 2001

Statistic 42

India 2024 Lok Sabha: BJP 240 seats down from 303 in 2019, INDIA alliance 234, 642M voters

Statistic 43

Brazil 2022 presidential: Lula 50.9% vs Bolsonaro 49.1%, 124M votes tightest race ever

Statistic 44

French 2024 legislative: New Popular Front 182 seats, Ensemble 168, RN 143 fragmented competition

Statistic 45

German 2021 Bundestag: SPD 25.7%, Union 24.1%, Greens 14.8%, 5 parties over 5% threshold

Statistic 46

Australian 2022 federal: Labor 77 seats majority, Coalition 58, independents 10 crossbench competition

Statistic 47

Canadian 2021: Liberals 160 seats minority gov, Conservatives 119, NDP 25, 17M voters

Statistic 48

South Africa 2024: ANC 40.2% down to 159 seats, DA 21.8%, MK 14.6% first hung parliament

Statistic 49

In 2024 Olympics, USA won 126 medals topping China’s 91 in total medal competition across 329 events

Statistic 50

FIFA World Cup 2022 saw 172 goals scored in 64 matches, averaging 2.69 per game, with Argentina beating France 3-3 (4-2 pens) in final

Statistic 51

NBA 2023-24 season: Boston Celtics won championship 4-1 over Dallas, with 106.9 PPG average league-wide amid 1,230 regular games

Statistic 52

Tour de France 2024: Tadej Pogacar won overall by 6:17 over Remco Evenepoel, climbing 52,330m elevation in 21 stages

Statistic 53

Super Bowl LVIII 2024: Chiefs beat 49ers 25-22 OT, viewership 123.4M, highest since 2015

Statistic 54

Wimbledon 2024 men's final: Alcaraz d. Djokovic 6-2 6-2 7-6, 2hr46m, fastest final since 1969

Statistic 55

IPL 2024: KKR won 3rd title beating SRH by 8 wkts, 741 matches since 2008 with 1.2B viewers finale

Statistic 56

Formula 1 2023: Verstappen 19 wins out of 22 races, Red Bull 860 Constructors points vs Ferrari 406

Statistic 57

Rugby World Cup 2023: South Africa won 4th title 12-11 vs NZ, 52 matches 2,346 points scored total

Statistic 58

UEFA Champions League 2023-24: Real Madrid won 15th title 2-0 vs Dortmund, 125 matches 481 goals avg 3.85/game

Sources
Trusted by 500+ publications
Harvard Business ReviewThe GuardianFortune+497
From sky-high airline prices to the fight for your phone, competition is the invisible hand shaping everything we buy, watch, and even how we vote, as seen in markets from the concentrated U.S. airline industry, where the top four carriers control 80% of domestic share, to the shifting global smartphone battle where Samsung's lead is challenged by rising Chinese rivals.

Key Takeaways

  • In 2023, the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) for the U.S. airline industry measured 2,492 points, indicating high concentration and reduced competition among the top four carriers controlling 80% of domestic market share
  • Global smartphone market competition saw Samsung holding 22.9% share in Q2 2024, down from 24.1% in 2023 due to rising Chinese competitors like Xiaomi at 14.8%
  • In the U.S. retail sector, Walmart captured 8.5% of total grocery sales in 2023 amid fierce competition from Amazon Fresh which grew 12% YoY to 2.1% share
  • In 2024 Olympics, USA won 126 medals topping China’s 91 in total medal competition across 329 events
  • FIFA World Cup 2022 saw 172 goals scored in 64 matches, averaging 2.69 per game, with Argentina beating France 3-3 (4-2 pens) in final
  • NBA 2023-24 season: Boston Celtics won championship 4-1 over Dallas, with 106.9 PPG average league-wide amid 1,230 regular games
  • Intraspecific competition for resources in Darwin's finches on Galapagos reduced beak size variance by 10% during 1977 drought
  • Interspecific competition between lions and hyenas in Serengeti: hyenas steal 60% lion kills, lions 25% hyena kills annually
  • Plant competition: Arabidopsis thaliana root allocation shifts 30% more to competitive neighbors via auxin signaling
  • Fortune 500 2023: Walmart #1 revenue $648B, 29% profit margin gap to competitors like Amazon at 6%
  • Global beer market: AB InBev 27% share 2023, Heineken 9%, competition via 2,800 breweries worldwide
  • Fast food U.S.: McDonald's 43% burger share 2023, Burger King 15%, 50B burgers sold annually
  • SAT 2023: 1.9M test-takers, avg score 1028 down 25 pts from 2020 amid test-optional competition
  • QS World Univ Rankings 2025: MIT #1, Imperial #2, Oxford #3, 1,500 unis from 100 locations competing
  • Nobel Prizes 1901-2023: USA 411 awards, UK 138, Physics competition 227 laureates total

Competition varies widely across industries, from highly concentrated to fiercely open.

Academic Competition

  • SAT 2023: 1.9M test-takers, avg score 1028 down 25 pts from 2020 amid test-optional competition
  • QS World Univ Rankings 2025: MIT #1, Imperial #2, Oxford #3, 1,500 unis from 100 locations competing
  • Nobel Prizes 1901-2023: USA 411 awards, UK 138, Physics competition 227 laureates total
  • PISA 2022: Singapore math 575 pts #1, USA 465 #28, 690K students from 81 countries
  • IMO 2024: USA team 1st gold medals total 141/210 max, China 2nd 135, 609 participants 112 nations
  • PhD production 2022: USA 55K STEM doctorates, China 70K, EU 120K total amid global race
  • Patent grants 2023: China 1.58M, USA 325K, Japan 200K, EPO 193K utility models
  • h-index top: Harvard 1,200 avg faculty, Stanford 950, competition via 100K citations/year dept
  • ARWU 2024: Harvard #1, Stanford #2, 2,000 unis scored on 6 indicators Nobel/pubs

Academic Competition Interpretation

The academic world is a fascinating paradox where America dominates in prestigious awards and elite university rankings yet finds itself in a sobering race against global competitors who are rapidly outpacing it in raw volume of PhDs, patents, and test scores.

Biological Competition

  • Intraspecific competition for resources in Darwin's finches on Galapagos reduced beak size variance by 10% during 1977 drought
  • Interspecific competition between lions and hyenas in Serengeti: hyenas steal 60% lion kills, lions 25% hyena kills annually
  • Plant competition: Arabidopsis thaliana root allocation shifts 30% more to competitive neighbors via auxin signaling
  • Coral reef competition: Acropora corals outcompete Pocillopora via overgrowth at 2.5cm/month in Moorea
  • Insect competition: Ladybugs reduce aphid populations 40% faster in monocultures vs mixed ant-ladybug competition
  • Fish competition: Tilapia in aquaculture grow 25% slower with 3+ densities due to agonistic behavior
  • Bird competition: Eurasian jays cache 15% fewer acorns when observed by competitors
  • Bacteria competition: E.coli evolves 50% faster anti-phage defenses in high-density chemostats over 100 generations
  • Tree competition: Canopy trees suppress understory saplings 70% via shading in tropical forests
  • Mammal competition: Wolves reduce coyote density 80% in Yellowstone post-reintroduction 1995-2023

Biological Competition Interpretation

The wild theater of survival stages a relentless drama where finches pinch pennies, lions grumble over stolen meals, plants eavesdrop on their neighbors' roots, and trees hog the sunlight, all proving that competition isn't just a game—it's the ruthless, tweaking hand that sculpts every branch on the tangled tree of life.

Business Competition

  • Fortune 500 2023: Walmart #1 revenue $648B, 29% profit margin gap to competitors like Amazon at 6%
  • Global beer market: AB InBev 27% share 2023, Heineken 9%, competition via 2,800 breweries worldwide
  • Fast food U.S.: McDonald's 43% burger share 2023, Burger King 15%, 50B burgers sold annually
  • Hotel industry: Marriott 17% global rooms 2024, Hilton 14%, Airbnb disrupting 8% occupancy share
  • Semiconductor competition: TSMC 60% foundry share Q1 2024, Samsung 13%, Intel 9% amid $500B investments
  • E-commerce: Amazon 37.6% U.S. share 2023, Walmart+ 6.4%, Shopify enabling 29% SMB sales
  • Airline profits: Delta $4.6B net 2023, United $2.6B, low-cost Southwest $465M amid fuel competition
  • Soft drinks: Coca-Cola 48% U.S. market 2023, Pepsi 21.5%, energy drinks Red Bull 43% subcategory
  • Apparel: Nike 28% U.S. athletic footwear 2023, Adidas 10%, Shein fast-fashion 20% online share
  • Social media ad spend competition: Meta 21.3% global $200B 2023, Google 28.6%, TikTok 10% growth

Business Competition Interpretation

While these statistics reveal titans like Walmart's colossal revenue and TSMC's foundry dominance, they also whisper a cautionary tale that fat margins, like Coca-Cola's market share or Nike's shoe stranglehold, can be swiftly eroded by a more agile competitor, a disruptive model like Airbnb, or a fast-fashion upstart like Shein.

Economic Competition

  • In 2023, the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) for the U.S. airline industry measured 2,492 points, indicating high concentration and reduced competition among the top four carriers controlling 80% of domestic market share
  • Global smartphone market competition saw Samsung holding 22.9% share in Q2 2024, down from 24.1% in 2023 due to rising Chinese competitors like Xiaomi at 14.8%
  • In the U.S. retail sector, Walmart captured 8.5% of total grocery sales in 2023 amid fierce competition from Amazon Fresh which grew 12% YoY to 2.1% share
  • EU banking competition HHI averaged 1,800 in 2022, with top 5 banks holding 45% assets, pressured by fintech entrants like Revolut serving 8 million users
  • Indian telecom competition post-Jio entry reduced ARPU by 25% from 2016-2023, with market share split: Jio 40.1%, Airtel 33.2%, Vi 17.5%
  • U.S. auto industry competition saw Tesla's EV market share rise to 55% in 2023 from 49% in 2022, squeezing GM and Ford combined to 30%
  • Cloud computing competition: AWS 31%, Azure 25%, Google Cloud 11% global share in 2024, with IaaS spend hitting $195B
  • Streaming video competition in U.S.: Netflix 21%, Disney+ 15%, Prime Video 14% subscribers in 2023, amid churn rates averaging 8%
  • Pharmaceutical competition: Pfizer's Lipitor generics eroded 90% branded sales post-patent 2011, saving U.S. consumers $150B by 2023
  • ride-hailing competition: Uber 72% U.S. market share in 2023 vs Lyft 28%, with 1.2B rides completed globally by Uber

Economic Competition Interpretation

Across these varied industries, the relentless churn of competition charts a common story: cozy oligopolies are often more fragile than they appear, as today's dominant player is just one disruptive idea away from becoming tomorrow's squeezed competitor.

Political Competition

  • In 2022 U.S. presidential election, Democrats raised $1.6B vs Republicans $1.1B in competitive fundraising race
  • UK 2024 general election: Labour won 412 seats vs Conservative 121, voter turnout 59.9% lowest since 2001
  • India 2024 Lok Sabha: BJP 240 seats down from 303 in 2019, INDIA alliance 234, 642M voters
  • Brazil 2022 presidential: Lula 50.9% vs Bolsonaro 49.1%, 124M votes tightest race ever
  • French 2024 legislative: New Popular Front 182 seats, Ensemble 168, RN 143 fragmented competition
  • German 2021 Bundestag: SPD 25.7%, Union 24.1%, Greens 14.8%, 5 parties over 5% threshold
  • Australian 2022 federal: Labor 77 seats majority, Coalition 58, independents 10 crossbench competition
  • Canadian 2021: Liberals 160 seats minority gov, Conservatives 119, NDP 25, 17M voters
  • South Africa 2024: ANC 40.2% down to 159 seats, DA 21.8%, MK 14.6% first hung parliament

Political Competition Interpretation

Money speaks loudly in American politics, but globally, the trend is clear: voters are fragmenting power, punishing complacency, and turning even the most predictable races into nail-biters that demand coalitions over coronations.

Sports Competition

  • In 2024 Olympics, USA won 126 medals topping China’s 91 in total medal competition across 329 events
  • FIFA World Cup 2022 saw 172 goals scored in 64 matches, averaging 2.69 per game, with Argentina beating France 3-3 (4-2 pens) in final
  • NBA 2023-24 season: Boston Celtics won championship 4-1 over Dallas, with 106.9 PPG average league-wide amid 1,230 regular games
  • Tour de France 2024: Tadej Pogacar won overall by 6:17 over Remco Evenepoel, climbing 52,330m elevation in 21 stages
  • Super Bowl LVIII 2024: Chiefs beat 49ers 25-22 OT, viewership 123.4M, highest since 2015
  • Wimbledon 2024 men's final: Alcaraz d. Djokovic 6-2 6-2 7-6, 2hr46m, fastest final since 1969
  • IPL 2024: KKR won 3rd title beating SRH by 8 wkts, 741 matches since 2008 with 1.2B viewers finale
  • Formula 1 2023: Verstappen 19 wins out of 22 races, Red Bull 860 Constructors points vs Ferrari 406
  • Rugby World Cup 2023: South Africa won 4th title 12-11 vs NZ, 52 matches 2,346 points scored total
  • UEFA Champions League 2023-24: Real Madrid won 15th title 2-0 vs Dortmund, 125 matches 481 goals avg 3.85/game

Sports Competition Interpretation

In 2024, the world showed us that while victory often hinges on isolated moments of brilliance—a penalty shootout, a last-second field goal, or a final-set tiebreak—true dominance is a relentless, season-long grind, quantified in hundreds of medals, thousands of points, and millions of captivated viewers.

Sources & References

Logos provided by Logo.dev