The formation and evolution of international research alliances in emergent technologies: Research issues

Abstract

Access to knowledge is increasingly the driver underpinning the globalization of research. In emerging industries, such access is often managed through alliance structures between small entrepreneurial organizations. The literature on international alliances, however, is dominated by studies of “Triad” nation partners (United States, Europe and Japan) which are often larger firms, collaborating for market access motives and usually with established technologies. In addition, prior research has concentrated on particular aspects, such as motives for, and initial circumstances of, alliance formation. Analyses of the dynamic aspects in the relationship between alliance partners are more scarce. This article describes a study of an international research alliance in which the technology is in the superconductivity industry (which itself is not conforming to traditional notions of an emergent technology), one partner is from a non-Triad nation and the primary motive for formation was access to knowledge. We argue that this study has revealed gaps in current alliance research and hypothesize how some more socially based and process-related considerations could enhance the debate on knowledge-seeking alliances.