New patterns in innovation policy: Grand challenge policies

Under the rapidly growing knowledge base in high-tech industries and the puzzles of deindustrialization, advanced economies are increasingly adopting new innovation policies that are aimed at reinforcing their industrial sectors. Also, some fast-growing countries, particularly in East Asia, are implementing combined innovation and industrial policies. Among these are grand challenge innovation policies. This paper aims at a first comparative analysis of these policies in different contexts and uses the solar photovoltaic sector as an example.

Innovation policy has become a major area of public policy in the last forty years. Since the year 2000, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and emerging countries have seen a new type of innovation policy emerge: grand challenge policies. Grand challenge programs first appeared in several fields of science before being adopted in technology programs, and finally took the form of innovation policies. Since the successful Human Genome Project (a scientific endeavor), the idea of putting together human and financial resources into efforts to solve major societal, scientific and economic problems gathered momentum. Programs appeared, such as the SunShot Initiative in the United States — a ten year program aiming to drive down the cost of producing solar electricity. Another US grand challenge is the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) initiative, launched in 2013.

A rapid analysis of China’s many technological developments, from the high-speed train to the Quantum satellite, shows that China has been successfully designing and implementing grand challenge policies without the name. While most initiatives have been launched by national governments, including those of Canada, China and the USA, private foundations, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, have triggered some grand challenges initiatives.    

Methodology and data

Using case studies and qualitative methods, the paper will analyse a sample of ten grand challenges that are already completed (the Human Genome Project) or being implemented, (the Human Proteome Project, at least two Gates Foundation grand challenges, and at least one National Academy of Engineering Grand Challenge such as Advance Health Informatics). If possible, a Chinese grand challenge, such as the High-Speed train (1999-2015) will be incorporated. Key variables are: the origin of the initiative, the budgets, the responsibilities, the time frames, the results even if preliminary, best practices, and the cost-benefit of the project.  A thorough case study on the US SunShot Initiative will complete the paper.