APEC should play prominent role in driving innovation

The world has been grappling with one crisis after another — from the COVID-19 pandemic to the Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Palestine conflicts — and the resulting exacerbated global uncertainties. What has complicated matters further is the extension of the competition among major countries beyond economics into politics, with some countries using anti-market and unlawful measures to gain the upper hand. These developments have slowed global innovation, posing a serious challenge to economic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region.

Yet the fundamental interdependence of countries remains intact even in the digital age, and de-globalization moves by some countries have not caused structural shifts. Instead, globalization is gaining momentum. North America remains at the forefront of groundbreaking innovations and East Asia continues its robust growth as an innovation hub, with Southeast Asia emerging as a dynamic force in the global arena. Together, these trends have created new, exciting opportunities for innovation across the Asia-Pacific.

North America, led by the United States, is home to more than one-third of the world's top scientists as well as leading enterprises in information communications technology, biotechnology, artificial intelligence and semiconductors. However, East Asia, comprising China — which includes Taiwan and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region — and Japan and the Republic of Korea boasts the world's largest pool of R&D personnel and leads North America in terms of investment in R&D.