□ A research team led by Jinhyo Yun, the Principal Investigator at the Division of AI, Big Data and Blockchain (ABB) at Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science & Technology (DGIST; President Kunwoo Lee) (Principal Professor of the Open Innovation Academy), published a paper in the European Journal of Innovation Management, one of the world’s most authoritative journals. The study, with Professor Yun as both first author and corresponding author, analyzes the effect of digital transformation on open innovation in the automotive industry. It is the outcome of international collaboration between Korea, Japan, and Germany.
□ Traditionally, the automotive industry has maintained a closed innovation structure focused on research and development (R&D). However, with rapid digital transformation and technological advances, such as electric vehicles, autonomous vehicles, and connected cars, the industry now faces the need to expand collaboration with other external industries. Integration with the software, electronics, and service industries, beyond the manufacturing industry, has become crucial. Nevertheless, few empirical studies have examined how digital transformation is changing open innovation in the automotive industry. To address this gap, the research team conducted a comparative study between Korea, Japan, and Germany, which are global automotive powerhouses, to analyze changes in open innovation strategies and collaboration practices.
□ Two methods were employed to conduct the study: patent analysis and in-depth interviews. The research team examined the patents of major automakers from Korea, Japan, and Germany registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), comparing three time periods: 2000–2001, 2010–2011, and 2020–2021. Consequently, the team identified changes in open innovation before and after digital transformation. For the in-depth interviews, research teams from Korea (DGIST), Japan (Meiji University), and Germany (University of Hohenheim) interviewed stakeholders from automakers and automotive parts suppliers in each country to explore the real-world applications of open innovation and the changes in collaboration within the industry.
□ While digital transformation has changed open innovation in the automotive industry, the impact has varied across the different countries.
△ In Korea, while open innovation has traditionally focused on collaboration with universities and research institutes, recent years have seen a trend toward stronger collaboration with automotive parts suppliers and within the industry.
△ In Japan, the country with the most active open innovation with automotive parts suppliers, collaboration with other industries has increased gradually in recent years.
△ In Germany, digital transformation has led to a sharp increase in collaboration between the automotive industry and other industries, such as electronics, services, and design, resulting in a wide expansion of open innovation.
□ This study is significant as it empirically analyzed how digital transformation has changed the open innovation structure of the automotive industry. While collaboration based on R&D was common in the past, the automotive industry, in the wake of digital transformation, has shifted toward expanding collaboration with other industries to foster innovation. More specifically, the study found that the open innovation strategies of each country varied according to their industrial settings and characteristics. The automotive industry is critical, as it is directly linked to a country’s economy, and this research is expected to serve as a reference not only for companies but also for policymakers.
□ This study was conducted jointly by the research team led by Professor Jinhyo Yun (including Dr. Zhao Xiaofei) at DGIST, Professor Yuri Sadoi’s research team at Meijo University in Japan, and Professor Andreas Pyka’s team at the University of Hohenheim in Germany. The results were published in the European Journal of Innovation Management, one of the world’s most privileged journals, and the study was funded by the DGIST R&D program.
- Corresponding Author E-mail Address : [email protected]
