The role of intra- and inter-regional relatedness and unrelatedness for the geography of breakthrough technological innovation: evidence from the US

Yijia Chen and Huiwen Gong

Regional Studies, 2025, vol. 59, issue 1, 2495795

Abstract: Not all innovations are alike. Breakthrough technological innovations have a greater impact on regional development and are a key topic in economic geography. However, most studies focus on intra-regional factors, with little attention given to inter-regional perspectives. To address this, we extend the concepts of relatedness and unrelatedness density from the intra- to the inter-regional scale. Using US patent data from the period 1976–2015, we find that both intra-regional (un)relatedness density and inter-regional (un)relatedness density contribute to the emergence of breakthrough technological innovations in regions. Moreover, intra-regional relatedness density can reinforce the role of other types of (un)relatedness density in breakthrough technological innovations.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1080/00343404.2025.2495795

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