Innovation in Russia and China Compared

Russia and China are endeavoring to transform Soviet-style R&D systems characterized by separate education, research and business spheres into something more suited to a knowledge economy supporting innovation. The Triple Helix model is an attractive configuration, not only because it derives from the practices of the most successful innovation systems, but particularly in its suggestion that the three key actors-universities, business and the state-might be able to at times substitute for each other. Any model placing the state at the center appeals to non-democratic regimes. This article compares the Chinese and Russian efforts to implement a Triple Helix program by examining institutional change, funding, and the role of the state, using nanotechnolgy as a case study. Despite both nations adopting major programs and spending significant amounts of money, we find that China has been vastly more successful than Russia in promoting collaboration among universities, business and government to encourage research and innovation. We attribute the difference to the quality of state policies that provide incentives for agents and epistemic communities to alter their behavior. China is increasingly achieving bottom-up development, while Russia’s system remains overwhelmingly top-down.