Trusted Research and Innovation: How knowledge leakage affects the Research & Innovation ecosystem

Nicola Searle, Bernhard Ganglmair () and Maurizio Borghi

No 25-030, ZEW Discussion Papers from ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research

Abstract: A robust Research & Innovation (R&I) ecosystem is essential for progress, economic resilience, and addressing complex challenges. At the heart of this ecosystem, knowledge fuels innovation and further discovery. However, knowledge leakage (the loss of valuable information) can disrupt this cycle. This poses a challenge for what is known as Trusted Research & Innovation (TRI), a framework designed to strengthen research security, protect national interests, and build resilient research systems. Despite its significance, the challenges of TRI remain poorly understood. This report investigates knowledge leakage. It begins with an overview of the TRI context, focusing on policymaking, and then reviews the literature on knowledge leakage and related concepts. An exploratory data analysis examines novel empirical data to better understand the extent of knowledge leakage and how it impacts economic areas of defence, economic, and national security importance. The data analysis finds that industries deemed important for economic and national security (the UK's 'sensitive economic areas') have an 18% higher incidence of leakage than those that are not.

Keywords: knowledge leakage; research security; theft of IP; economic security; national security; Trusted Research & Innovation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F52 O25 O33 O34 O38 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-knm and nep-sbm
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