Not like the others: Frontier scientists for inventive performance
研究发现，在顶级生物医学期刊发表过论文的“前沿科学家”作为发明人时，其专利被引更多、更可能成为技术热点、价值更高，且这种优势部分源于他们更善于利用前沿科学。
Linking scientific articles in PubMed and corporate biomedical U.S. patents, we study the role of inventors who are frontier scientists, identified as authors of recent articles in top-general biomedical journals. We find that inventions by these “frontier authors” receive more patent citations, are more likely to become technology hits, and have broad technology impact. They are also more likely to be internally further developed by the firm, hold greater private value, and feature broader claims—not only compared to inventions by non-author inventors but also to those by non-frontier authors, including “star” authors. This impact premium is especially strong in scaled-up young biopharmaceutical firms and for frontier authors internally employed at the patenting firm. To better understand the mechanism behind the impact premium of frontier-author patents, we analyze their boundary spanning role. We find that frontier-author patents are more likely to use and to be first users of frontier science. However, while frontier-author patents achieve peak impact when referencing frontier science, this advantage is comparable to other patents that reference frontier science. And as frontier-author patents also enjoy an impact premium on patents referencing other than frontier science, our results, thus, suggest that closeness to frontier science in only part of the story of the superior impact of inventions by frontier scientists. • We study the contribution of frontier scientist as inventors in firm technology. • Patents of frontier authors generate superior technology impact and private value. • Frontier nature (top & recent) in the author-inventor link drives broader impact. • Frontier-author patents more likely use and lead in adopting frontier science. • Better use of frontier science partly explains frontier-author patents' impact.