Working Paper: NBER ID: w24674
Authors: Pierre Azoulay; Erica Fuchs; Anna Goldstein; Michael Kearney
Abstract: From its 1958 origin in defense, the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) model for research funding has, in the last two decades, spread to other parts of the US federal government with the goal of developing radically new technologies. In this paper, we propose that the key elements of the ARPA model for research funding are: organizational flexibility on an administrative level, and significant authority given to program directors to design programs, select projects and actively manage projects. We identify the ARPA model’s domain as mission-oriented research on nascent S-curves within an inefficient innovation system. Finally, we describe some of the challenges to implementing the ARPA model, and we comment on the role of ARPA in the landscape of research funding approaches.
Keywords: No keywords provided
JEL Codes: I23; O31; O32; Q55
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| arpa model (C59) | breakthrough technologies (O33) |
| organizational flexibility and empowered program directors (M54) | breakthrough technologies (O33) |
| structured management practices (L23) | successful technological advancements (O33) |
| arpa model's features (C22) | success of innovation efforts (O36) |
| mission orientation and state of the broader innovation system (O35) | realization of benefits from arpa model (O22) |