Early figures indicate that businesses in Ireland spent just under €1.7 billion on research and development (R&D) last year, up from €1.6 billion in 2007.
The figures are contained in a study carried out jointly by the Central Statistics Office and State advisory body Forfás.
Small firms - those employing fewer than 50 people - spent almost €350m last year, while bigger companies spent €1.3 billion.
The study found that almost 13,900 people were working in R&D in Ireland in 2007, of whom 8,300 were researchers. The study estimated that this was the equivalent of 10,900 full-time jobs. 1,200 companies were involved in R&D activity, with a third spending €500,000 or more.
