Public-Private Partnership as Timely Innovation Factor of the USA

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PPP (public-private partnership) is traditionally considered as a supplementary tool of spurring economic activity in specific areas. But in innovations such a union proves to become especially vital in modern situation of NBIC-revolution (Industrial Revolution 4.0). The article examines why and how a Network of Radical Innovation PPPs in USA (Manufacturing USATM) became the major zest of Obama’s economic policy and what can be done for their more active development under President D. Trump, should such a will become real under his rule. As shown below, the Manufacturing USA Network creates basis for Greenfield birth and/or sprouting of new NBIC-technologies through traditional industrial clusters, reviving their most perspective segments and elements and thus giving chances for new sustainable competitive growth of USA economy within global market. Notwithstanding general assumption of US national innovation system as decentralized and based on private innovation entrepreneurship (corporations), contemporary economic reality gives little chance for US firms to be competitive in cutting- edge technologies of the future without pre-competitive cooperation with each-others, with the State and with academic sector (research universities) using smart PPP models. Radical innovation PPPs (RIPPPs), thus, are turning into indispensable new element of US innovation mechanism. Perspectives of US innovation and industrial system without RIPPPs look gloomy as without joint federal and academic support US-based corporations (both transnational corporations and nationally-oriented firms) cannot timely obtain substantial sustainable competitive technological advantage over their foreign counterparts. Usage of PPP tool is not uncommon for America as back in 1987 USA established world’s first Innovation PPP called SEMATECH aimed at fostering semiconductor industry in face of Japan growing global leadership in semiconductors. But today such cooperation is needed throughout a bunch of mutually-dependent and interconnected NBIC- technologies among which IT is only a separate one. The article shows that RIPPP system has both theoretical, pragmatic and political aspects and US leading parties do not coincide on this important subject. Author proves that RIPPP is in the interest of all sectors of economy as RIPPPs develop mainly radical general- purpose technologies (as, for example, was ICT-technology for USA in 1980-1990). Notwithstanding that no progress yet made in Innovation PPPs by administration of D. Trump, Manufacturing USA net grows and new international innovation partnerships with US participation demonstrate growing internation al importance of such cooperation: BRAIN Initiative declared at the Australian Academy of Science in Canberra in December 2017 by representatives of the United States, Australia, Europe, Japan and Korea is declared to unite USA with major countries of former Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement, TPP (Including USA, Australia, Japan, Korea) notwithstanding the fact that D. Trump forced USA to leave TPP in 2017. This International RIPPP is the first example of precompetitive cooperation in artificial intelligence (AI) field. International RIPPPs tend to form an important new node in global innovation system.