Innovation Management in the Age of AI and Disruption
人工智能和动荡时代的创新管理
Kenneth G. Huang 黄光立
Prof. Kenneth G. Huang黄光立(Ph.D., MIT) is the Dean's Chair and Full Professor at the National University of Singapore (NUS) in the Department of Industrial Systems Engineering and Management (ISEM) and Department of Strategy and Policy, NUS Business School. He is the Academic Director of the Master of Science (MSc.) in Management of Technology and Innovation at NUS. He is elected to the Executive Committee of Academy of Management (AOM) Strategic Management (STR) Division. He is the Deputy Editor of Management and Organization Review and serves on the editorial boards of Academy of Management Journal, Strategic Management Journal, Organization Science and Technological Forecasting and Social Change.
His research focuses on innovation and technology management and strategy (e.g., AI, biotech, environment, IT), entrepreneurship, AI and digital strategy, intellectual property (IP) management and global strategy, science and technology policy, open science/innovation and institutional change particularly in emerging economies such as China and ASEAN. His research is internationally influential and has been published in high-impact, leading journals such as Science, Academy of Management Journal, Strategic Management Journal, Organization Science, Journal of Management, Journal of International Business Studies, Research Policy, Nature Biotechnology, PNAS, IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, Industrial and Corporate Change, Journal of Management Studies, Management and Organization Review and Academy of Management Best Paper Proceedings. His research has also been recognized by several international research and best paper awards from AOM, SMS, DRUID, AIB and INFORMS. His work and commentaries have been featured in major international media outlets.
An award-winning educator, he designs and teaches courses such as Intellectual Property Management and Innovation Strategy, Entrepreneurial Strategy, Technology Management Strategy, and Corporate Strategy for the MSc., EMBA, Ph.D. and undergraduate programs at NUS. He also directs and teaches in several executive education programs focusing on senior (C-suite) executives. He is a sought-after keynote speaker for major international conferences and advises and works with firms, startups, financial organizations and government institutions. He earned his Ph.D. in Technology Management and Policy from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Innovation Management in the Age of AI and Disruption
人工智能和动荡时代的创新管理
【Abstract】
Innovation management and research in the age of AI and disruption require a sound understanding of different institutions and the technological context of AI. I will first lay the groundwork for innovation management across developed and transitional economies, which have contrasting institutions, and highlight the technological context of AI based on my research. At their intersection, I will present a recent study on "AI innovations under geopolitical disruptions: CFIUS blockage and AI adoption in U.S. firms". In response to heightened national security concerns over the past two decades, the United States (U.S.) government has tightened foreign investment regulations, which disrupt the flow of critical knowledge and expertise from foreign entities—key drivers of firm innovation. This study examines how firms strategically adopt artificial intelligence (AI) innovations to mitigate the loss of external knowledge sources caused by such disruptions. AI technologies and tools, with their ability to overcome cognitive limitations, facilitate access to and processing of distant knowledge and help expand beyond local search routines, thus mitigating the impact of geopolitical disruptions. Using a staggered difference-in-differences approach, we analyze how the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS) blockages—which serve as a plausibly exogenous shocks to international collaboration—have influenced U.S. firms’ AI innovations and strategies between 2008 and 2017. Our findings show that affected firms significantly increase the development of their AI patented innovations while reducing their reliance on foreign patented technologies. These effects are particularly pronounced in industries with higher trade interconnectedness and among firms with broader search breadth. This research advances the literature on innovation management and geopolitical disruptions by highlighting the important and strategic role of AI technologies in overcoming heightened barriers imposed by the government to international investments and knowledge transfer. The findings underscore how firms could leverage AI to navigate regulatory constraints and sustain innovation in an era of heightened global economic and political uncertainty.
