Policies that support renewable energy technologies also drive innovation in complementary technologies for energy storage, grid efficiency, and fast-ramping combustion. Public R&D funding has the most consistent impact and should be increased.

Side Effects: How Renewable Energy Policies Drive Innovation in Complementary Grid Technologies

Last week, the Bureau of Economic Analysis updated a recent paper on the digital economy to include more precise data, and it expanded the observed period to cover the years 1997 through 2017. In doing so, it found that the digital economy grew 9.9 percent annually over this 20-year period—4.3 times faster than the overall economy—and represented 6.9 percent of U.S. GDP as of 2017.

Fact of the Week: The Digital Economy Grew 4.3 Times Faster than the U.S. Economy Overall from 1997 to 2017

A new study has sought to quantify this impact, tracking the availability of drugs released after 1981 that are designed to treat 66 diseases across 27 countries.

Fact of the Week: Drugs Launched After 1981 Have Saved 149 million Years of Life

Labor productivity growth has slowed dramatically across the developed world in recent years. In the United States, it dropped to just 0.96 percent in the 10-year period from 2007 to 2017. That was down by more than half from 2.06 percent in the previous 10-year period.

Fact of the Week: The Digital Economy has Contributed to 86 Percent of U.S. Labor Productivity Growth in Recent Years Despite Accounting for Only 8.2 Percent of GDP

Although automation in the German manufacturing sector decreased employment by 23 percent from 1994 to 2014, these job losses were fully offset by new job opportunities in the service sector, writes John Wu in Innovation Files.

Fact of the Week: In Germany, Manufacturing Jobs Lost Through Automation From 1994 to 2014 Were Fully Offset by New Service Sector Jobs

American childen born to parents in the top 1 percent of the income distribution are 10 times more likely to grow up to be an inventor than those born to parents with incomes below the median, writes John Wu in Innovation Files.

Fact of the Week: An American Child Born to Parents in the Top 1 Percent of the Income Distribution is 10 Times More Likely to Grow up to be an Inventor Than a Child Born to Parents With Incomes Below the Median

The digital economy accounted for 9.6 percent of US GDP in 2019, or $2.05 trillion.

Fact of the Week: The Digital Economy Accounted for 9.6 Percent of GDP in 2019

The United States is addressing its anemic share of the semiconductor fabrication market (which was 40 percent in 1990) through the CHIPS for America Act and U.S. Innovation and Competitiveness Act. But while these measures are steps in the right direction, they only address a narrow set of the electronics ecosystem. 

Fact of the Week: The US Share of the PCB Market Fell From Over 30 Percent in 2000 to Just 4 Percent in 2020

That tariffs put a damper on R&D investments is straightforward: Firms absorb some of the increased input costs, reducing profits and thus the funds available to invest. But tariffs also undercut R&D at a much deeper level. By reducing the exposure firms face to foreign markets, tariffs limit the potential gains from innovation, thereby lowering the returns from investing in R&D.

Fact of the Week: Tariffs Would Reduce R&D Investment Returns in High-Tech Manufacturing by Up to 50 Percent

When universities invest in R&D, they can generate returns for themselves of up to 9 percent, writes John Wu in Innovation Files.

Fact of the Week: When Universities Invest In R&D, They Can Generate Returns For Themselves Of Up To 9 Percent

A recently released National Bureau of Economic Research working paper finds that larger firms’ greater returns on R&D activities is derived from their ability to capture a greater proportion of the value created by their inventions. 

Fact of the Week: Large Firms’ Innovation Advantage Stems From Greater Commercialization Capabilities

Taking more science classes in secondary school increases the student’s probability of enrolling in a university STEM program by 1.5 percentage points, writes John Wu in Innovation Files.

Innovation Fact of the Week: Students Are More Likely to Pursue STEM Degrees in College If They Are Exposed to More Science Subjects During High School

Companies invest in innovation to be competitive and to ensure their long-term financial success, and in so doing they create jobs and spur productivity, writes John Wu in Innovation Files.

Fact of the Week: The 2,500 Companies That Together Account for 90 Percent of the World's Business R&D Are Hiring Workers Faster Than the Population Is Growing

Counterfeit goods accounted for 2.5 percent of global trade in 2013, writes John Wu in Innovation Files.

Fact of the Week: Counterfeit Goods Accounted for 2.5% of Global Trade in 2013

After analyzing technological change over recessions and across OECD countries, economists find that it wasn't at fault for sluggish employment growth in the United States post-Great Recession, writes John Wu in Innovation Files.

Fact of the Week: Discontinuing Combustion Vehicle Sales Could Save up to $188 Billion in Health-Care Costs

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Side Effects: How Renewable Energy Policies Drive Innovation in Complementary Grid Technologies

Fact of the Week: The Digital Economy Grew 4.3 Times Faster than the U.S. Economy Overall from 1997 to 2017

Fact of the Week: Drugs Launched After 1981 Have Saved 149 million Years of Life