Innovation in emerging markets – the case of China

Purpose – Multinational companies are increasingly locating R&D activities in emerging markets, particularly China. This paper aims to focus on why China is moving from imitation to innovation, how MNCs are evolving their R&D activities in China, the challenges they face, and how they deal with these challenges. Design/methodology/approach – As this is a viewpoint paper, the authors do not report any methodology other than the general research that the authors have been conducting for the last two years, primarily interviews with companies. Findings – The key finding is that China is moving from imitation to innovation and that multinational companies should develop strategies for conducting R&D there. Originality/value – This is a fairly original paper in that there has been only limited research on innovation in China.