城市正在失去创新优势吗？在线与面对面互动
Are Cities Losing Innovation Advantages? Online Versus Face-to-Face Interactions
The Economic Journal · 2025 · [{"name": "Ruben Gaetani", "affiliation": ["University of Toronto"]}, {"name": "Naqun Huang", "affiliation": ["Nanjing Audit University"]}, {"name": "Jing Li", "affiliation": ["Singapore Management University"]}, {"name": "Yanmin Yang", "affiliation": ["Nanjing Audit University"]}]
中文摘要
摘要 COVID-19如何影响密集地区的创新优势？利用美国全部专利申请数据，我们发现，相对于疫情前水平，2020–2021年新颖发明生产中的密度溢价下降了18.5%–22.9%。本地流动性的智能手机数据表明，本地互动频率的下降可以解释这一效应的很大一部分。尽管COVID-19导致密集地区的创新优势出现暂时性挫折，但城市密度在促进思想交流与重组方面的作用不太可能被在线通信持久取代。
Abstract
Abstract How did COVID-19 affect the innovation advantages of dense locations? Using data on the universe of US patent applications, we find that the density premium in the production of novel inventions declined by 18.5%–22.9% in 2020–1 relative to its pre-pandemic level. Smartphone data on local mobility suggest that the drop in the frequency of local interactions can explain a significant portion of this effect. While COVID-19 resulted in a temporary setback in the innovation advantages of dense locations, the role of urban density in facilitating the exchange and recombination of ideas is unlikely to be persistently replaced by online communication.