Knowledge flows between science and industry and how to measure them

The exchange of knowledge between science and industry has been a focus of innovation research and policy for many decades. New developments in the way technologies are generated, shared, and transferred into new products, services, and business models are currently re-emphasising science-industry interactions. Main drivers are the emergence of open innovation models, the increased internationalisation of innovation processes, the rise of digital platforms, new modes of governance in public research, and the enlarged role of disruptive innovations. At the same time, the measurement of knowledge flows is still limited, and indicators on recent trends in science-industry interaction are lacking. This limits innovation policy in monitoring changes and addressing challenges. A conference in October 2019 in Berlin brought together industry representatives, researchers, and policy makers to discuss these developments and how the measurement of science-industry links could be improved. This policy brief summarises key trends in science-industry collaborations, presents existing indicators and discusses ways to improve our indicator system on knowledge flows between science and industry in order to better inform policy.