Table Of ContentThe Digitalisation of Science, Technology
and Innovation
KEY DEVELOPMENTS AND POLICIES
The Digitalisation of Science,
This report examines digitalisation’s effects on science, technology and innovation and the associated
consequences for policy. In varied and far‑reaching ways, digital technologies are changing how scientists Technology and Innovation
work, collaborate and publish. While examining these developments, this book also assesses the effects
of digitalisation on longstanding policy themes, from access to publicly funded research data, to the diffusion
of technology and its absorption by firms. New and emerging topics are also explored. These include
KEY DEVELOPMENTS AND POLICIES
the roles of artificial intelligence and blockchain in science and production, using digital technology to draw
on the collective intelligence of the scientific community, advances in the digitalisation of biotechnology,
and possible "dark sides" of digitalisation.
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ISBN 978-92-64-97802-7
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The Digitalisation
of Science, Technology
and Innovation
KEY DEVELOPMENTS AND POLICIES
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Please cite this publication as:
OECD (2020), The Digitalisation of Science, Technology and Innovation: Key Developments and Policies, OECD Publishing, Paris,
https://doi.org/10.1787/b9e4a2c0-en.
ISBN 978-92-64-97802-7 (print)
ISBN 978-92-64-50177-5 (pdf)
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FOREWORD 3
Foreword
The OECD’s Committee for Scientific and Technological Policy (CSTP) brings together representatives from
OECD countries, and a number of partner economies, to examine major aspects of public policy relevant
to science, technology and innovation (STI). By guiding the OECD’s empirical research and data gathering,
and promoting peer-based learning, the Committee works to improve understanding of these policies and,
ultimately, to advance policymaking itself.
The digital revolution and its implications have been central to the OECD’s, and CSTP’s, work for many years.
Recently – during 2017 and 2018 – the OECD’s Going Digital project comprehensively examined digital
technology’s economic and social impacts. The resulting report, Going Digital: Shaping Policies, Improving
Lives, provides a roadmap for policy making in the digital age.
In 2015, in their joint declaration, ministers from OECD countries and partner economies, at the OECD
Ministerial Meeting in Daejeon (Korea), recognised that digital technologies are revolutionising STI. Ministers
highlighted that the rapid development of digital technologies is changing the way scientists work, collaborate
and publish; increasing the importance of access to scientific data and publications; opening new ways for
the public to engage and participate in science and innovation; facilitating research co-operation between
businesses and the public sector; contributing to the transformation of how innovation occurs; and, driving
the next production revolution. The ministers asked the OECD to monitor this ongoing transformation.
This publication examines digitalisation’s effects on STI and the associated consequences for policy. It draws
mainly on work performed under the aegis of CSTP during 2017 and 2018. Some of the topics addressed are
longstanding themes in CSTP’s work – from access to publicly funded research data, to the measurement
of digital science and innovation. Other topics are newer and emerging, from the role of artificial intelligence in
production, to how digital technology could help utilise the collective intelligence of the scientific community,
to recent advances in the digitalisation of biotechnology.
Certain aspects of the digital revolution are still relatively new, even if their effects are already profound. It
is evident that, owing to the general-purpose character of digital technology, its future development will
also have far-reaching consequences. As digital technology and its many ramifications evolve, CSTP will
continue to serve as a unique international and inter-governmental focal point for policy analysis and
guidance in the field of STI.
This book was declassified by CSTP on 12 August 2019 by written procedure and prepared for publication
by the OECD Secretariat.
THE DIGITALISATION OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION © OECD 2020
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 5
Acknowledgements
Alistair Nolan edited this publication. Alistair Nolan also wrote Chapter 1 (“An overview of key developments
and policies”) as well as Chapter 5 (“Artificial intelligence, digital technology and advanced production”).
Mr. Nolan, and all the authors of this publication, work in the OECD’s Directorate for Science, Technology
and Innovation.
Fernando Galindo-Rueda wrote Chapter 2 (“How are science, technology and innovation going digital?
The statistical evidence”).
Carthage Smith wrote Chapter 3 (“Digital technology, the changing practice of science and implications
for policy”).
Chapter 4 (“Digital innovation: Cross-sectoral examples and policy implications”) was written by Dominique
Guellec, Caroline Paunov and Sandra Planes-Satorra.
James Philp wrote Chapter 6 (“Digitalisation in the bioeconomy: Convergence for the bio-based industries”).
Chapter 7 (“The digitalisation of science and innovation policy”), was written by Michael Keenan, Dmitry
Plekhanov, Fernando Galindo-Rueda and Daniel Ker.
Dominique Guellec, Head of the OECD’s Division for Science and Technology Policy, provided detailed
comments throughout. Valuable comments were provided by Andy Wyckoff and Dirk Pilat, Director and
Deputy-Director, respectively, of the OECD’s Directorate for Science, Technology and Innovation.
Mark Foss provided editorial support. Serve Blandine gave statistical assistance. Florence Hourtouat and
Beatrice Jeffries formatted and checked the text of successive drafts. And Angela Gosmann oversaw all
aspects of the publication process. Their contributions are gratefully acknowledged.
Thanks are likewise due to the delegates to the OECD’s Committee for Scientific and Technological Policy
who provided comments on chapter drafts.
Thanks are similarly due Professor Morten Irgens, of Oslo Metropolitan University (OsloMet), who arranged
sponsorship for, and gave intellectual support to, a joint workshop between OsloMet and the OECD in Oslo
on 1 and 2 November 2018. The workshop, titled “Digital Technology for Science and Innovation – Emerging
Topics for Policy and Assessment”, explored emerging issues at the intersection between digital technologies
and policies for science and innovation. Many of the ideas examined at that event appear in this publication.
THE DIGITALISATION OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION © OECD 2020
TABLE OF CONTENTS 7
Table of contents
Foreword 3
Acknowledgements 5
Acronyms, abbreviations and units of measure 13
Executive Summary 17
Digitalisation and science 17
Realising the untapped potential of digital technology in policy 17
Digitalisation and innovation in firms 17
Developing digital skills 18
Committing to public sector research 18
Building expertise in government 18
1 An overview of key developments and policies 19
Introduction 20
Why does digitalisation matter? 20
The broader context in which science, technology and innovation are digitalising 21
Measuring the digitalisation of science and innovation 22
Digitalisation, science and science policy 23
Accessing scientific information 24
Enhancing access to research data 24
Broadening engagement with science 25
Artificial intelligence for science 25
Digitalisation and innovation in firms 27
Does innovation policy need to be adapted for the digital age? 28
Digitalisation and the next production revolution 29
AI in production 29
New materials and nanotechnology 30
Developing digital skills 30
Education and training systems must draw on information from all social partners 30
Facilitating the diffusion of digital technologies and tools 32
New digital technologies may make diffusion more difficult 32
Committing to public sector research 34
Multidisciplinary research 34
Public-private research partnerships 35
Developing technology- and sector-specific capabilities in government 36
Ensuring access to complementary infrastructures 36
Improving digital security 37
THE DIGITALISATION OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION © OECD 2020
8 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Examining intellectual property systems in light of digitalisation 37
Optimising digital systems to strengthen science and innovation policies 38
Ensuring interoperability in DSIP systems 38
Using DSIP systems in research assessment 39
The roles of the business sector in DSIP 39
The outlook for DSIP systems 39
Digitalisation in science and innovation: Possible “dark sides” 39
Distributional effects and digitalisation of STI 40
Complex systems and unmanageable machine ecologies 40
Negative impacts on science from digitalisation 41
Wider risks linked to digital technology 41
The untapped potential of digital technology for STI policy 42
Prediction markets for STI policy 42
Blockchain for science, technology and innovation 43
Using social media to spread innovation 44
Conclusion 44
References 45
Notes 49
2 How are science, technology and innovation going digital? The statistical
evidences 51
Introduction 52
Science going digital 53
Scientific research on digital technologies 53
Scientific research and artificial intelligence 53
The science system and its contribution to the development of digital skills 60
Scientific research enabled by digital technology 63
Looking ahead: Scientists’ perspectives on digitalisation and its impacts 68
Technology and innovation going digital 70
Development of digital technologies 70
Use of digital technology in business and the link between digitalisation and innovation 72
Conclusion 75
Digitalisation is everywhere in STI, but with varying depth and perspective 75
Digitalisation is a “game-changer” for STI measurement and analysis 76
References 78
Notes 81
3 Digital technology, the changing practice of science and implications for policy 83
Introduction 84
Accessing scientific information 84
Enhanced access to research data 86
Business models for data repositories 87
Trust and transnational barriers 87
Data privacy and ethics 90
Broader engagement in science 90
Promoting and steering open science systems in the digital world 92
Conclusion 95
References 96
Note 98
THE DIGITALISATION OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION © OECD 2020
