Abstract:
How are Industry 4.0 investments distributed across Italian regions
and sectors? Which are the main drivers of diffusion? To address these
questions, in this study we exploit rich firm survey data on the adoption
of the new digital technologies and examine their adoption patterns. On
the one hand, we produce novel insights into the drivers of structural
change in the Italian economy, and on the other, we provide evidence on
the technological upgrading of Italy's production capacity that is relevant
for policy. The results of econometric tests on region-sector pairs indicate
that corporate governance characteristics, innovation patterns and type
of industrial relations are significant predictors of the uneven regional and
sectoral distribution of Industry 4.0 investments.
