Development of European Public Goods and Strengthening of the European Added Value in the Field of Research and Innovation with a Focus on Disruptive Innovations

Tasks

Groundbraking innovations in the field of cutting-edge technology - so called disruptive innovations - have the potential to bring about extensive welfare enhancing changes beyond national borders. This may justify, in particular, the public funding of disruptive innovations at the European level. The brief expertise deals with the European funding of disruptive innovations and the question of its reasonable design. With the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the United States has long had a state agency to promote disruptive innovations. The brief expertise therefore compares the innovation support in the USA with the European funding structure. The aim of the institutional comparison is then to derive insights for the design of disruptive innovation promotion in Europe.

Methods

The expertise is based on a literature review consisting of academic literature and evaluation studies on the effects of DARPA and comparable research and innovation agencies. Building on this, a comparative institutional-economic analysis of the incentive structures for research funding in the EU is carried out with a particular focus on disruptive innovations.

Data and other sources

Academic literature, evaluation studies as well as annual reports and mission statements of the examined institutions.