True Innovation
China needs social and political reform for innovation to
flourish and fuel economic growth
In the past several hundred years human society has experienced a cycle
of globalization. It began when Columbus sailed to the Americas 500
years ago. Since then the market has kept expanding, the division of labor
deepening, technology progressing, and wealth increasing. At the core of
this cycle are entrepreneurs. The market does not come about all by itself.
The market is composed of entrepreneurs. For instance, without WeChat
(a popular chatting application), there would be no WeChat market.
Without cell phones, there would be no cell phone market. All markets are
Counterfeit Products
For almost three decades, beginning in the 1980s, when Chinese
entrepreneurs experienced their first financial successes, there were many
uneven markets in China. At that time, the low-hanging fruit was
plucked by simply copying other countries existing products. In other
words, they made money with counterfeit products. Over time, they did
not think about creating something new to meet market needs.
Social Restraints
Another factor is Chinas social-political system. The social system decides
whether entrepreneurs are inclined toward innovation or regulation.
Regulation does not involve much risk or uncertainty. As long as one
dares to take some risks, one can make money. Innovation, however, is
completely uncertain. One has to see things that no one else can see, and
some people might even consider the idea crazy. In a system that does not
tolerate freedom, nor the basic guarantee of rights, including the right to
own the returns of innovation, most entrepreneurs simply wont focus on
innovating.
If a country does not have a sound legal system, there will be a lot of
regulation-type economic activity. In a country with no rule of law, no
transparent policies, where rules keep changing and peoples rights are
not effectively guaranteed, entrepreneurs cannot be innovative.
Innovation takes time. It may take three, five, or even ten or twenty years
to develop a product.
A good example is the Gillette razor. King C. Gillette was a small door-todoor merchant in the late 1800s. His initial idea for developing a cheaper,
safer, disposable razor blade was sparked by his annoyance of always
getting cuts on his face when shaving. He talked to numerous experts who
told him that it was not possible, and that there was no way to make steel
so thin and cheaply. But Gillette did not believe that, and kept pursuing
his idea until he finally succeeded six years later. Six years is actually quite
a short time for developing a new product compared with the challenges
and failure many inventors have faced.
If China really transforms from its past growth model of resource
allocation to innovation, then entrepreneurs must also change from being
regulated to becoming innovative. To encourage innovation, Chinas
economic and political systems must undergo radical changes. To quote
Tyler Cowen in The Great Stagnation: Only through a rule of law which
strictly restrains government power can entrepreneurs have the ability
and confidence to make reasonable predictions and invest in the future.
China, therefore, also needs reform in other areas, including reform of the
education system. When the Chinese peoples minds, especially students
and scholars, are freed, new ideas will come. All innovation starts from an
idea, a new and different idea that most people do not embrace. Only then
can China expect higher economic growth in the future. Innovation, in
fact, equals freedom.