Industry-University cooperation in China's HSR Innovation

Abstract

This doctoral research proposal investigates how China's Government–Industry–University (GIU) innovation system operates in the high-speed rail (HSR) sector, and what accounts for variation in its functioning and performance. Beginning from China's remarkable trajectory—from importing foreign HSR technology in 2004 to operating over 45,000 km of track and exporting indigenous designs today—the proposal argues that existing explanations remain incomplete. The literature review traces scholarship across three phases: the "market for technology" period (2004–2008), in which the Ministry of Railways' monopsony power and engineered competition among foreign and domestic suppliers secured genuine technology transfer; the "independent innovation" period (2008–2015), in which state-orchestrated collaboration linked hundreds of firms, universities, and laboratories; and an emerging national innovation systems literature focused on inter-sectoral interaction. Three gaps motivate the study: existing work is periodised around policy shifts and largely stops at 2015, neglecting the 2013 dismantling of the Ministry of Railways and the 2015 CNR–CSR merger; empirical data are dated, predating recent reforms in science and technology governance, intellectual property, and overseas expansion; and the mechanisms of cross-sectoral mobility and "boundary-blurring" (role displacement and overstepping) remain under-theorised. Theoretically, the proposal synthesises national innovation systems theory, the Triple Helix model, entrepreneurial state theory, and Complex Products and Systems (CoPS) literature, adapting the Triple Helix to a state-led, mission-oriented context where its assumption of three co-equal spheres does not hold. Methodologically, the study adopts a comparative multiple-case design combining patent, publication, and policy data with 20–30 semi-structured interviews and site visits. A preliminary scan of Beijing, Zhuzhou, Changchun, Qingdao, and Chengdu will inform final case selection; Zhuzhou (industry-dominated) and Chengdu (university-dominated) are already confirmed.