Abstract:

The transition towards Electric Vehicles (EVs) is connecting previously unrelated technologies. The authors combined an approach to transitions with economic geography, to explore how colocation can support the emergence of coevolution between EV-related sectors. The authors studied technological and geographical relatedness between electric vehicle, battery, smart grid, and combustion engine inventions between 1980 and 2020. Geographical colocation of related technologies can signal coevolution between firms and inventors, that is specifically visible in some classes of cities that the authors identify. Finally, The authors fit a multiple regression to estimate the impact of cities’ patenting in related technologies on EV patents. Results show increased relatedness inside cities and growth of colocation in time between electric vehicle, battery, and smart grid patents, demonstrating that relatedness is dynamically evolving during transitions. The findings revealed that combustion engine capabilities are still relevant to support this transition, suggesting path interdependence between cities’ innovative sectors.