In today’s rapidly evolving digital age, the emergence of groundbreaking technologies such as robotics, big data, vritual reality and the Internet of Things is reshaping industries and everyday life. These innovations hold the potential to revolutionize sectors from healthcare to manufacturing, enhance productivity, and create new opportunities for growth and development. However, despite the increasing interest and investment in these digital technologies, comprehending their diffusion remains difficult.
To bridge this gap, we have developed a comprehensive webapp that leverages patent data to track and analyze the diffusion of some cutting-edge technologies. By examining patent trends, we can uncover patterns and shifts, offering a clearer picture of how these technologies are spreading and evolving.
This webapp aims to share with other researchers, experts and a wider public the results of our research carried out at the University of Trento with Mauro Caselli and Andrea Fracasso in an accessible and engaging format. Whether you are a policymaker, researcher, business leader, or technology enthusiast, this tool allows you to explore the dynamics of technology diffusion. We invite you to delve into our dashboard and discover the transformative journey of these pivotal technologies.
Please note that this is a work in progress, and we welcome all constructive feedback to improve its functionality and content. Additionally, the dashboard may require a few minutes to load the first time you access it, so we appreciate your patience.
References
2024
Digital Technologies and Firms’ Employment and Training
This study examines the causal influence of digital technologies, specifically operational (ODT) and information digital technologies (IDT), on firms’ employment structure using Italian firm-level data. It employs a unique empirical approach, constructing instrumental variables based on predetermined employment composition and global technological progress, proxied by patents. Findings indicate that IDT investment positively affects employment, favoring a skilled, IT-competent workforce, as supported by firms’ training and recruitment plans. Conversely, ODT investment does not significantly alter total employment but skews the workforce towards temporary contracts. The study contributes methodologically by distinguishing between ODT and IDT and highlighting nuanced employment dynamics within firms.
@misc{Caselli_FourrierNicolai_Fracasso_Scicchitano_2024b,title={{Digital} {Technologies} and {Firms}' {Employment} and {Training}},author={Caselli, M. and Fourrier-Nicolaï, E. and Fracasso, A. and Scicchitano, S.},year={2024},note={Work in Progress}}
Digital Technology Adoption: The Dual Role of Firm Leadership
This work empirically examines the adoption of Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) technologies, using firm-level data from Italy for the period 2015-17. The analysis shows that technology adoption varies together with the scope of technological opportunities by industry, measured by the number of worldwide patents in a given 4IR domain and industry during the period 2000-2014, and that the extent to which firms are receptive to the technological progress depends on firms’ absorptive capacity. The latter, in turn, varies across firms according to the characteristics of the firm’s leaders, as these influence firms’ exploratory capabilities and their internal organization. However, while the direct effects of leader characteristics on technology adoption are significant in all technological domains, their moderating effects vary significantly across technologies.
@misc{Caselli_FourrierNicolai_Fracasso_Scicchitano_2024a,title={{Digital} {Technology} {Adoption}: {The} {Dual} {Role} of {Firm} {Leadership}},author={Caselli, M. and Fourrier-Nicolaï, E. and Fracasso, A. and Scicchitano, S.},year={2024},note={submitted to Industrial \& Corporate Change}}
