The Decline of America’s National Innovation System

Understanding the value of innovation, where it comes from, and how to enhance it is vital for American policymakers trying to improve national economic performance.

Unfortunately, as Rob Atkinson explains in Washington Monthly, America’s innovation environment—our “national innovation system” (NIS)—is currently threatened by misguided public distrust of technological progress and the economic, political, and social institutions that help create it.

While the right cringes at “crony capitalism” and insists the government should not partner with private industries, the left equates business success to the “one-percent.” Combined, these viewpoints contribute to “neo-Ludditism,”a growing fear of innovation and technological progress, whether regarding genetically modified organisms (GMOs), big data, or automation. Misconceptions of how technology will impact privacy, labor markets, health outcomes, and personal freedoms are perpetuated by interest groups and the media and damage America’s ability to effectively compete internationally in the most advanced industries.

These trends are particularly troubling given the efforts of our global competitors to strengthen their own innovation systems and promote their use in boosting economic and job growth.

Read the article.