Innovation and entrepreneurship in East Asia during the digital era: post-pandemic prospects

Abstract

The global economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic is posing more challenges and problems than expected. Amid the re-building, innovation and entrepreneurship driven by digital technologies are still considered by many as the two important pillars of the regional economic recovery. In East Asia, for example, digital technologies have proven to be effective solutions to not only the pandemic and lockdowns but to the problems of post-pandemic recoveries. This collection explores this to substantiate our hypothesis from multiple aspects. We find that open innovation is an important digital strategy for firms during the post-pandemic era. The entrepreneurial performance of digital start-ups is notably influenced by information and communication technology and artificial intelligence. Simultaneously, the development of digital ventures needs additional help from government policies and local cultural institutions. These findings enrich our understanding of innovation and entrepreneurship in East Asia especially during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.