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Shenzhen is a stellar case of growth and economic transformation. Since its establishment as one of China’s first four Special Economic Zones in 1980, it has evolved at breakneck speed. Shenzhen transformed from a fishing village to a major world trade hub and is now home to global innovators in electronics. The Production Transformation Policy Review (PTPR) of Shenzhen, China reviews the city’s changing policy approaches, focusing on the shift from an assembly to a manufacturing centre and more recently to an innovation and start-up hub. Through a comprehensive assessment of Shenzhen’s experience, this review offers insights into the range of policies and strategies employed to stimulate industrial upgrading and learning in China. It provides lessons and actionable policy recommendations for the growth of cities and emerging economies in their catching-up journey. The PTPR of Shenzhen, China has been carried out in the framework of the OECD Initiative for Policy Dialogue on Global Value Chains, Production Transformation and Development and has benefitted from government-business dialogues and international peer learning (University of Seoul, Korea; University of Georgetown, USA and Digital India Foundation, India).

The slowdown in market demand for oil is putting increasing pressure on Kuwait's current economic and social model. This model is based on the distribution of petroleum export proceeds to Kuwaiti citizens, with relatively limited long-term investment in knowledge production and the upgrading of the national innovation capacity. The transition towards a knowledge-based society – where value creation, the resolution of societal challenges and the well-being of society at large will be based on the production, diffusion and implementation of knowledge – is becoming an imperative. This is recognised within the national development strategy which formulates the objective of attaining 'Smart Kuwait' by 2035. Such a transition is challenging and can only be achieved through the build-up of appropriate governance of the STI system with adequate institutions such as a Ministry and a professional agency with a mandate for research and innovation. This set-up should help raise awareness and reduce barriers to innovation, reinforce the scientific research base, develop the support for business innovation, foster knowledge diffusion and co‑creation between science and industry, build up the human capital needed, and establish the role of science, technology and innovation in tackling Kuwait's societal challenges.

Blockchain is mainstreaming, but the number of blockchain for development use-cases with proven success beyond the pilot stage remain relatively few. This paper outlines key blockchain concepts and implications in order to help policymakers reach realistic conclusions when considering its use. The paper surveys the broad landscape of blockchain for development to identify where the technology can optimise development impact and minimise harm. It subsequently critically examines four successful applications, including the World Food Programme’s Building Blocks, Oxfam’s UnBlocked Cash project, KfW’s TruBudget and Seso Global. As part of the on-going work co-ordinated by the OECD’s Blockchain Policy Centre, this paper asserts that post-COVID-19, Development Assistance Committee (DAC) donors and their development partners have a unique opportunity to shape blockchain’s implementation.

As the United Nations Decade on Ocean Science for Sustainable Development begins, this paper explores recent and likely future digital technologies - especially in the field of ocean observation - that will contribute to ocean sustainability. It examines advances that could lead to substantial improvements in the data collection and analysis of the impact of climate change and human activity on marine ecosystems, while also contributing to the monitoring and reduction of the ecological footprint of ocean-related economic activity. The paper also provides preliminary reflections on how the COVID-19 pandemic might affect digitalisation in the ocean economy, and what strategies could help support ocean research and innovation during and after the crisis.

This work proposes an experimental methodology to identify and measure artificial intelligence (AI)-related trademarks. It aims to shed light on the extent to which (new) companies and products appearing on the market rely on, exploit or propose AI-related goods and services, and to help identify the companies and organisations that are active in the AI space. The paper finds evidence that AI-related goods and services have expanded in consumer markets in recent years. Companies and other economic agents appear to register AI-related trademarks primarily to protect computer-related products and/or services, especially software, audio-visual devices and for analytical purposes. Important trademark activities related to AI also emerge in the education space, with AI-related keywords being frequently associated with educational services as well as classes, publications, workshops and online material.

Biorefineries present an alternative to fossil-based production, and can create employment, wealth and the ecosystem needed to make them function. Thailand is establishing a bioeconomy with widespread biorefining as a strategy for future economic growth. There is political will to establish in Thailand, if feasible, small, decentralised biorefineries to which farmers can locally deliver biomass as feedstock, which can then be processed into bio-based products. This would help to relieve rural poverty, which is still a problem in some areas of Thailand despite progress. Developing a biorefining roadmap will help to assess the feasibility of such an initiative.

Governments, together with partners in industry and civil society, are developing experimental forms of collaborative platforms to provide better linkages between research and innovation, and to promote the development and use of emerging technology. This report analyses 33 case studies from key fields of emerging technology – genomics, advanced materials and engineering biology – and finds that collaborative platforms are most effective when they act as 'convergence spaces' for the fusion of diverse disciplines, actors and technology. It also shows how governance mechanisms shape platform operations and act as policy levers for ordering what amounts to a common pool resource: they aim to maximise tangible and intangible value, realise sustainability models, foment collaboration, and promote technological integration. After presenting cross-cutting and comparative findings on key components of governance, the report concludes with policy implications for the design of existing and future collaborative platforms.

This report presents evidence on efforts taken by companies to ensure trust in the digital economy through transparency reporting. Focussing on the world’s most widely used social media platforms, online communication services, file-sharing platforms and other online services (many of which are based in the United States), the report identifies both good practices and challenges in transparency reporting. Challenges include limited informative value and comparability, as well as an inability to provide reliable information on the extent to which governments gain access to personal data held by the private sector. A range of actions are proposed to address these challenges, recognising the need to develop a more robust evidence base by expanding the number of countries and companies analysed. This report informed the review of the OECD Privacy Guidelines.