nep-ino New Economics Papers
on Innovation
Issue of 2023‒12‒18
nine papers chosen by
Uwe Cantner, University of Jena


  1. The impact of regulation on innovation By Aghion, Philippe; Bergeaud, Antonin; Van Reenen, John
  2. Proximity of firms to scientific production By Antonin Bergeaud; Arthur Guillouzouic
  3. A Public Choice Perspective on Mission-Oriented Innovation Policies and the Behavior of Government Agencies By Björnemalm, Rickard; Sandström, Christian; Åkesson, Nelly
  4. Replicable Patent Indicators Using the Google Patents Public Datasets By George Abi Younes; Gaetan de Rassenfosse
  5. Tickets to the global market: First US patent awards and Chinese firm exports By Robin Kaiji Gong; Yao Amber Li; Kalina Manova; Stephen Teng Sun
  6. Exporting ideas: Knowledge flows from expanding trade in goods By Philippe Aghion; Antonin Bergeaud; Timothee Gigout; Matthieu Lequien; Marc Malitz
  7. Autocatalytic Networks and the Green Economy By Arnaud Persenda; Alexandre Ruiz
  8. Social Push and the Direction of Innovation By Einiö, Elias; Feng, Josh; Jaravel, Xavier
  9. State Aid, R&D, and the Digital Content of Trade By Chiara Castelli; Dario Guarascio; Stefan Jestl; Robert Stehrer

  1. By: Aghion, Philippe; Bergeaud, Antonin; Van Reenen, John
    Abstract: We present a framework that can be used to assess the equilibrium impact of regulation on endogenous innovation with heterogeneous firms. We implement this model using French firm-level panel data where there is a sharp increase in the burden of labor regulations on companies with 50 or more employees. Consistent with the model’s qualitative predictions, we find a sharp fall in the fraction of innovating firms just to the left of the regulatory threshold. Furthermore, we find a sharp reduction in the positive innovation response of firms to exogenous demand shocks just below the regulatory threshold. Using the structure of our model we quantitatively estimate parameters and find that the regulation reduces aggregate equilibrium innovation (and growth) by 5.7% which translates into a consumption equivalent welfare loss of at least 2.2%, approximately doubling the static losses in the existing literature.
    Keywords: innovation; regulation; patents; firm size
    JEL: O31 L11 L51 J80 L25
    Date: 2023–11–01
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:120206&r=ino
  2. By: Antonin Bergeaud; Arthur Guillouzouic
    Abstract: Following Bergeaud et al. (2022), we construct a new measure of proximity between industrial sectors and public research laboratories. Using this measure, we explore the underlying network of knowledge linkages between scientific fields and industrial sectors in France. We show empirically that there exists a significant negative correlation between the geographical distance between firms and laboratories and their scientific proximity, suggesting strongly localized spillovers. Moreover, we uncover some important differences by field, stronger than when using standard patent-based measures of proximity.
    Keywords: knowledge spillovers, technological distance, public laboratories
    Date: 2023–11–15
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1961&r=ino
  3. By: Björnemalm, Rickard (Stockholm School of Economics); Sandström, Christian (The Ratio Institute); Åkesson, Nelly (Lund University)
    Abstract: Mission-oriented innovation policies put government and state agencies at the forefront of the innovation process. PrFiguesently, little is known about the interests of the government agencies in charge of implementing mission-oriented innovation policies. In this chapter, we set out to explore the incentives and behavior of such government agencies. We do so by analyzing 30 annual reports from three different government agencies in charge of implementing innovation policies in Sweden over a ten-year period: Sweden’s Innovation Agency (Vinnova), the Swedish Energy Agency (Energimyndigheten) and the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth (Tillväxtverket). First, we track all cases in these annual reports where an evaluation is mentioned. Identifying 654 instances, we subsequently make a sentiment analysis and code whether these statements are positive, neutral or negative. Our findings show that 84 percent of these instances are positive, 12 percent are neutral and four percent are negative. Second, we relate these results to more critical evaluations and show that these agencies often ignore research that generates more critical results. In sum, our results suggest that government agencies in charge of implementing mission-oriented policies benefit from the enlarged role they are given and that they act according to their own self- interest.
    Keywords: Mission-oriented; Innovation Policy; Evaluations; Public choice
    JEL: O25 O31 O38 O44 Q42 Q55
    Date: 2023–11–13
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:ratioi:0366&r=ino
  4. By: George Abi Younes (Ecole polytechnique federale de Lausanne); Gaetan de Rassenfosse (Ecole polytechnique federale de Lausanne)
    Abstract: Recognizing the increasing accessibility and importance of patent data, the paper underscores the need for standardized and transparent data analysis methods. By leveraging the BigQuery language, we illustrate the construction and relevance of commonly used patent indicators derived from Google Patents Public Datasets. The indicators range from citation counts to more advanced metrics like patent text similarity. The code is available in an open Kaggle notebook, explaining operational intricacies and potential data issues. By providing clear, adaptable queries and emphasizing transparent methodologies, this paper hopes to contribute to the standardization and accessibility of patent analysis, offering a valuable resource for researchers and practitioners alike.
    Keywords: BigQuery language; data transparency; patent analytics; patent data
    JEL: O34
    Date: 2023–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iip:wpaper:24&r=ino
  5. By: Robin Kaiji Gong; Yao Amber Li; Kalina Manova; Stephen Teng Sun
    Abstract: We investigate how international patent activity enables firms from emerging economies to thrive in the global marketplace. We match Chinese customs data to US patent records and leverage the quasi-random assignment of USPTO patent examiners to identify the causal effect of a US patent grant on the subsequent export performance of Chinese firms. Successful first-time patent applicants achieve significantly higher export growth, compared to otherwise similar first-time applicants that failed. This effect operates only in small part through market protection for technologically patent-related products in the US and is largely driven by expansion in other markets. The response across destinations and products reveals that a US patent award signals the Chinese firm's capacity to produce high-quality products and credibility to honor contracts, mitigating information frictions in international trade. There is little evidence for the relaxation of financial constraints or the promotion of follow-on innovation.
    Keywords: patent rights, innovation, export performance, trade, market protection, asymmetric information, signalling
    Date: 2023–11–21
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1962&r=ino
  6. By: Philippe Aghion; Antonin Bergeaud; Timothee Gigout; Matthieu Lequien; Marc Malitz
    Abstract: We examine the effect of entry by French firms into a new export market on the dynamics of their patents' citations received from that destination. Applying a difference-in-differences identification strategy with a staggered treatment design, we show that: (i) entering a new foreign market has a significant impact on the long-run flow of citations; (ii) the impact is mostly driven by the extensive margin; (iii) inventors in destination countries patent mostly in products that do not directly compete with those of the exporting firm; (iv) the spillover intensity decreases with the technological distance between the exporting firm and the destination.
    Keywords: international trade, spillover, innovation, patent
    Date: 2023–11–15
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1960&r=ino
  7. By: Arnaud Persenda (Université Côte d'Azur, France; GREDEG CNRS); Alexandre Ruiz (Université Côte d'Azur, France; GREDEG CNRS)
    Abstract: Green goods are products necessary to reach sustainable development targets. Since they offer many benefits, we discuss the question of why not all countries produce them. Using the economic complexity framework, we study how likely it is that a country will get a comparative advantage by producing green goods. We also study the externalities in terms of diversification prospects that arise from gaining a comparative advantage by producing and exporting green goods. For this purpose, we define a directed network in which nodes are products and links are the probability that a product catalyzes another one several years later. This network uses bilateral trade flows at the 6-digit level to assess the autocatalytic structure of product adoption, by identifying clusters of self-reinforcing products. We show that green goods are less prone to self-reinforcement compared to their non-green counterparts and offer fewer avenues for economic diversification. We also find that the impact of diversification varies across countries, suggesting that a one-size-fits-all approach to fostering the production of green goods may not be effective.
    Keywords: Economic complexity, Economic growth, Structural change, Networks, Autocatalytic set
    JEL: D85 F43 O25 O44 O50 Q50 Q56
    Date: 2023–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gre:wpaper:2023-16&r=ino
  8. By: Einiö, Elias; Feng, Josh; Jaravel, Xavier
    Abstract: What are the implications of unequal access to innovation careers for the direction of innovation and inequality? Leveraging novel linked datasets in the United States and Finland, we document that innovators create products more likely to be purchased by consumers like them in terms of gender, socioeconomic status, and age. We find that a key explanatory channel is that social exposure causes a shift in the direction of innovation, independent of financial incentives. Incorporating this "social push" channel into a growth model, we estimate that unequal access to innovation careers has a large effect on cost-of-living inequality and long-run growth.
    Keywords: innovation, inequality, growth, innovators' socioeconomic background, Social security, taxation and inequality, O31, O41, D71, fi=Elinkeinopolitiikka|sv=Näringspolitik|en=Industrial and economic policy|, fi=Tulonjako ja eriarvoisuus|sv=Inkomstfördelning och ojämlikhet|en=Income distribution and inequality|,
    Date: 2023
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fer:wpaper:160&r=ino
  9. By: Chiara Castelli (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Dario Guarascio; Stefan Jestl (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw); Robert Stehrer (The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw)
    Abstract: We test for the role of state aid as a driver of digital competitiveness at the industry level, focusing on the digital factor content of trade. Results show that state aid may increase digital competitiveness, particularly in R&D-intensive industries and in relation to the export of (digital) capital-intensive goods and services. Interestingly, aggregate state aid appears to be more effective than specific R&D funds in explaining the performance of country-industries in foreign markets.
    Keywords: Factor content of trade, ICT capital, state aid, sectoral R&D capability
    JEL: F14 O30
    Date: 2023–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wii:wpaper:237&r=ino

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