Bridging Innovation Distances: High‐Speed Rail and Patent Agency Utilization in China
研究高铁开通是否促进跨城市专利代理服务利用，发现高铁连接后跨城市专利代理显著增加，尤其在技术复杂度高的行业，为通过基础设施优化创新中介提供政策启示。
ABSTRACT Innovation intermediaries are instrumental in enhancing the efficacy of the innovation process, yet their accessibility tends to be geographically restricted, particularly in underdeveloped regions. This study examines whether the development of transportation infrastructure can alleviate these spatial frictions, promoting cross‐regional utilization of intermediary services and subsequently improving innovation outcomes. Leveraging a unique database on patent agency utilization for all invention patents in China from 2003 to 2019, and employing high‐speed rail (HSR) as a natural experiment, we estimate a staggered difference‐in‐difference model at the city‐pair level. Our findings suggest that reductions in transportation costs lead to a substantial increase in cross‐city PAU after HSR connection, especially in sectors with higher technology sophistication requiring more face‐to‐face interactions between inventors and agents. This research uncovers a novel mechanism through which HSR influences innovation and provides policy implications for optimizing innovation intermediaries through infrastructure development.