Recent Research: Are new ideas really getting harder to find?

A new working paper from researchers affiliated with the U.S. Census Bureau and several universities revisits one of the biggest questions in innovation policy: why has productivity growth slowed even as research and development spending continues to rise? For the technology-based economic development (TBED) community, the answer matters because it shapes how states, regions, and federal agencies think about innovation investments.

Connecting companies to research assets faster: the Tennessee Innovation Exchange model

The Tennessee Innovation Exchange (TNIX) is a statewide initiative designed to make it easier for companies, entrepreneurs, and investors to connect with university research expertise across Tennessee. In this recent TBED Community of Practice webinar, speakers Chuck Layne of LaunchTN and Tom Kissane of Halo Sciences explained how they partnered with six research universities to build a shared digital platform that supports university-industry collaboration and commercialization. 

The Tennessee Innovation Exchange (TNIX) is a statewide initiative designed to make it easier for companies, entrepreneurs, and investors to connect with university research expertise across Tennessee. In this recent TBED Community of Practice webinar, speakers Chuck Layne of LaunchTN and Tom Kissane of Halo Sciences explained how they partnered with six research universities to build a shared digital platform that supports university-industry collaboration and commercialization.

Recent Research: What two new studies tell us about innovation networks

Two recent research papers approach entrepreneurship and innovation from very different perspectives but arrive at a similar conclusion about how regional economies grow and change over time. Keeping technology-based economic development (TBED) initiatives proactively thinking about and addressing that evolution is a central aspect of all SSTI TBED-focused programming. Empirical research, like is discussed below, provides external evidence of how needs are changing and programs may want to adapt. 

Recent Research: Is innovation district success the enemy of resilience?

Innovation districts have become a central tool in contemporary economic development, promoted for their ability to revitalize underused urban areas, attract high-growth firms, and strengthen regional competitiveness. Influenced by early work from Bruce Katz and colleagues at the Brookings Institution, many districts were intentionally located in formerly industrial or disinvested neighborhoods and initially delivered clear economic gains.

Times Higher Education finds interdisciplinary research drives university innovation

Serious birdwatchers know one finds the most variety in species where habitats collide, on the edges of domains. This also holds true for innovation, discovery, and scientific disciplines. Recent research shows that institutions that support interdisciplinary teams with strategic investments, institutional alignment, and collaborative ecosystems are more likely to create innovations that lead to patents, products, and companies. 

Serious birdwatchers know one finds the most variety in species where habitats collide, on the edges of domains. This also holds true for innovation, discovery, and scientific disciplines. Recent research shows that institutions that support interdisciplinary teams with strategic investments, institutional alignment, and collaborative ecosystems are more likely to create innovations that lead to patents, products, and companies.

China's next goal: Global leadership in innovation

Long-time readers may recall the SSTI Weekly Digest article included in its May 30, 2005, edition, two decades ago, titled "China's Goal: Quadruple 2000 GDP by 2020." China made it by the way, growing 428 percent from 2000 to 2020, measured with purchasing power parity (PPP) in constant 2021 international dollars. The United States, for comparison, grew only 44 percent in the same period and has trailed China in GDP PPP on the international scale ever since sometime in 2021. As the chart using Word Bank data shows below, China has never looked back.

Recent Research: Do mergers and acquisitions spur more or less innovation?

With fewer than 1,000 Initial Public Offerings in any year, the most common exit strategy for investors in early-stage innovation firms is to find an acquisition opportunity. For the broader economic goal of encouraging innovation because it drives growth and societal progress, when large firms acquire smaller, innovative companies, does it promote innovation, or does it primarily help dominant players thwart possible competition and consolidate market power?

With fewer than 1,000 Initial Public Offerings in any year, the most common exit strategy for investors in early-stage innovation firms is to find an acquisition opportunity. For the broader economic goal of encouraging innovation because it drives growth and societal progress, when large firms acquire smaller, innovative companies, does it promote innovation, or does it primarily help dominant players thwart possible competition and consolidate market power? This is the central question of a recent research paper.

Why the 2025 Nobel Prize in Economics matters for innovation policy

Note: The research careers for this year’s triple winners support the underlying arguments for public involvement in technology-based economic development. Well-designed and sustained public-private regional innovation initiatives—the work of SSTI and its member organizations—can make a positive difference for local competitiveness.  

Note: The research careers for this year’s triple winners support the underlying arguments for public involvement in technology-based economic development. Well-designed and sustained public-private regional innovation initiatives—the work of SSTI and its member organizations—can make a positive difference for local competitiveness.

NSF plans for streamlined breakthrough innovation prizes

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Directorate for Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (TIP) is inviting comments regarding the proposed collection of information for its Breakthrough Innovations Initiative application. According to the notice in the Federal Register, published on Sept. 19, 2025, they are launching this initiative “to enable researchers, innovators, and entrepreneurs to apply unconventional approaches to create game-changing technologies and translate discoveries into tangible applications and products.”