Annual Business Survey (ABS)

The Annual Business Survey (ABS) gathers information on business-owner demographics, innovation, technology adoption, and micro-R&D expenditures. Conducted by the Census Bureau with the National Science Foundation, ABS provides demographic and structural insight into the U.S. business landscape.

ABS enables inclusive-growth and entrepreneurship research by revealing ownership patterns by race, gender, veteran status, and ethnicity. On a data platform, it can be combined with employer and non-employer data to study representation, identify gaps, and design equitable business-support programs. ABS’s detailed and transparent statistical data make it central to understanding diversity in the American economy.