A question about AI teching

[Greasy Dave]

I bought the game this month and have had time to play a couple of games.

There's something I don't understand about the AI teching. I can have double the science of the AI and yet it can somehow have researched as many or more techs than me? What's going on, how is it keeping up?

Currently I'm playing an immortal standard game as the japanese. I just hit the rennaissance, I have universities etc. Most other civs have had half of my research output for at least 50 turns or so and yet they are still equal to me or ahead in techs.I don't believe they have unlocked spying yet? It's not just one or two, but basically all of them. Even the weakest

Iinitially I thought it was because I was playing wide. But I found out last week that the Civ 5 city research penalty doens't apply in civ 6.

Is it because the AI uses eureka moments/ inspiration far more effectively than I do? So they only ever research half of a tech and let the other half unlock with some inspiration?

Following on from that, what's the best way to get ahead in the tech race mid game? Apart from research buildings - given that mine aren't really helping me.

 

[Browd]

Well, at Immortal difficulty, the AI starts with 3 free techs and 3 free civics, and gets a +24% bonus on both science and culture.

 

[liv]

The number of cities is what will help you. The best way to get cities is to take them. So war is the ingredienty you may be missing. On immortal I always plan to take some cities . Getting science from your envoys by placing them in blue states helps.
You will likely be behind for awhile anyways.

 

[Greasy Dave]

The number of cities is what will help you. The best way to get cities is to take them. So war is the ingredienty you may be missing. On immortal I always plan to take some cities . Getting science from your envoys by placing them in blue states helps.
You will likely be behind for awhile anyways.

I started aggressively and have taken most of China and Norway plus grabbed three wandering settlers - everyone hates me, naturally. But I thought I was getting pretty well set up. The UI told me I was earning double the science output of all the other civs, bar Saudi Arabia. So I was kind of surprised when I looked at the victory tab and found everyone had the same number of techs as myself..or more

I guess that 25 percent boost Browd mentioned and the 3 free starting techs are what's helping them.

Maybe they also use the inspiration moments more effectively than I can?

 

[Victoria]

If people are unaware they also do tech research deals with each other.