China as an Innovation Nation

Yu Zhou is a Professor of Geography at Vassar College. She received Bachelor and master degree in urban and environmental sciences at Peking University and her PhD. in Geography at University of Minnesota in 1995. Her research is on globalization and high-tech industry in China, and ethnic communities and transnational business networks in the United States. She is the author of the book The inside story of China's high-tech industry: making Silicon Valley in Beijing (2008). She has received multiple grants and awards, and was selected as one of the Public Intellectual Fellows by National Committee of United States-China Relations. William Lazonick is Professor of Economics and Director of the Center for Industrial Competitiveness at University of Massachusetts Lowell. He is Co-founder and President of The Academic-Industry Research Network. Lazonick is also a visiting Professor at the University of Ljubljana, the Telecom School of Management, Paris, and the Munk Centre of Global Affairs, University of Toronto. He holds a B.Com from the University of Toronto (1968), M.Sc. (Econ) from the London School of Economics (1969), and Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University (1975). In 1991 Uppsala University awarded him an honorary doctorate for his work on the theory and history of economic development.Yifei Sun is Professor of Economic Geography at the Department of Geography, California State University, Northridge (CSUN). Dr. Yifei Sun has worked as the principal investigator for two projects supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation. One project examined foreign R&D in China while the other analyzed the technological innovation in China's information communication technology industries. He has published more than thirty articles in leading international journals such as Journal of Economic Geography, Technovation, Regional Studies, Environment and Planning A, and International Journal of Technology Management. Dr. Yifei Sun has co-edited five special issues on China's innovation in reputable international journals such as International Journal of Technology Management, China Review, Environment and Planning A, Asian Pacific Business Review and GeoJournal. He also co-edited one of the first books on foreign R&D in China, entitled "Global R&D in China" (Routledge, 2008)

There have been many books about innovation in China recently. This book clearly stands out for its penetrating analysis of the evolutionary process of how industries in China, traditional and high-tech, are climbing the ladder of innovation. It has also demystified some of the controversies around the concept of indigenous innovation. The book not only sheds light on how China has become the world factory over the last 30 years, but also provides clues on where Chinese innovation is going in the next decade. It is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand what is going on in China and how China is going to influence the world.

• 1. Introduction: China's Transformation into Innovation-Nation ; 2. Evolution of Chinese State Policies on Innovation ; 3. Venture Capital in China ; 4. China's Mechanical Engineering Industry: Offering the Potential for Indigenous Innovation? ; 5. Chinese Indigenous Innovation in the Car Sector: Being Integrated or Being the Integrator ; 6. High Speed Rail Development in China - A Case Study of State-guided Technology Transfer ; 7. State, Market, and Business Enterprise: Development of the Chinese Integrated Circuit Foundries ; 8. Catching up and Developing Innovation Capabilities in China's Telecommunication Equipment Industry ; 9. State, Multinational Corporations, Returnees and Development of China's Integrated Circuit (IC) Design Industry ; 10. The Evolution of China's Mobile Phone Industry and Good-enough Innovation ; 11. The Development of China's Wind Power Technology Sector: Characterizing National Policy Support, Technology Acquisition and Technological Learning ; 12. The Rise of the Chinese Solar Photovoltaic Industry: Firms, Governments, and Global Competition