Behind the rhetoric of `intervention' and `deregulation' which has accompanied state attempts to stimulate technological innovation in the last decade is secreted a story of failed ambitions, confusion, muddle and incoherence.

Techno-industrial innovation does make demands on the state, not only in terms of new industries, but also in regard to the inter-relation of industrial and R&D policy and the creation of markets.

This book provides a comparative analysis of techno-industrial innovation in Europe, Japan and the USA. Drawing on case studies ranging from the semi-conductor to the biotechnology industries, the book presents a comprehensive and detailed survey of national strategies for the internal and world markets and sets them in their political context, where `the costs may be high and the pay-offs uncertain'.