BRICS is an international association made up of five countries – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. Taken together, their population forms about 42% of the world's overall population. It's therefore little surprise that the five countries, albeit some more intensely than others, are becoming major economic and political influences. They are also becoming more focused on innovation, which was the subject of the last BRICS summit last month in Brazil: “BRICS: Economic Growth for an Innovative Future”