Productive Robots and Industrial Employment: The role of national innovation systems

Chrystalla Kapetaniou and Christopher Pissarides
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Chrystalla Kapetaniou: Nesta

No 2023, Discussion Papers from Centre for Macroeconomics (CFM)

Abstract: We examine robot-labour substitutions in manufacturing and some other sectors in industrial countries. We show that the degree of substitution depends on demand and production elasticities. In multi-country empirical work its sign and magnitude crucially depends on a country's innovation environment. Making use of World Economic Forum data we estimate that countries with poor innovation capabilities substitute robots for workers but countries with richer innovation capabilities complement them. In non-manufacturing and transport equipment robots and workers are stronger substitutes than in other manufacturing. Our results can be rationalized by appeal to both firm objectives and international trade.

Keywords: robots-employment substitution; innovation enviromnent; company objectives; industrial allocations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J23 L21 L6 O33 O52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 42 pages
Date: 2020-08
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Productive robots and industrial employment: the role of national innovation systems (2025)
Working Paper: Productive robots and industrial employment: the role of national innovation systems (2023)
Working Paper: Productive robots and industrial employment: the role of national innovation systems (2022)
Working Paper: Productive Robots and Industrial Employment: The Role of National Innovation Systems (2022)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cfm:wpaper:2023

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