Co-Evolution of Technology and Institutions in Emerging Industries: Case from Electric Vehicles in China

Technology and institutions are important driving forces for industrial development, but the relationship between them has not yet reached a consensus due to different economic theories. On the basis of the evolutionary theory, this paper aims to study the roles co-evolution of technology and institutions played in the development of emerging industry. Taking electric vehicles in China as a case study and the five-year plans for the nodes of industrial development, this paper analyzes the co-evolutionary process of technology and institutions at different stages of industrial development, and concludes that it was institutions that promoted technology innovation during the industrial incubation and infancy periods, while during the growth period, it was technology that drove institutions’ innovation. In order to promote the development of electric vehicle industry, it is necessary to further strengthen institutional innovation for technological and industrial development.