The globalization, the rapid advancement of information technologies, the development of artificial intelligence, and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic necessitate that countries adopt a proactive stance towards innovation. The research methodology is both qualitative and quantitative. The qualitative aspect involves a theoretical analysis that examines the dynamics of innovation. The quantitative aspect includes an empirical analysis that employed a cluster analysis to categorize countries based on their innovation dynamics, followed by mean comparison analysis to identify factors associated with superior innovation performance. The sample, derived from the European Innovation Scoreboard 2023, encompasses 36 European countries. The findings reveal three clusters of countries and indicate that the most robust innovation dynamics are linked to several framework conditions: Human resources, Attractive research systems; Investments: Finance and support, Firm investments, Linkages and Impacts, particularly on employment and economic effects.