ABSTRACT This study investigates the impact of open R&D infrastructure on firm innovation. We exploit a Chinese policy mandating access to national R&D equipment as a natural experiment. We find that greater access significantly increases firm innovation, especially for firms facing tighter financing constraints or more limited prior access to such infrastructure. Firms respond by reallocating R&D inputs away from equipment investment and towards human capital, particularly inventors, thereby improving innovation efficiency and diversity. More broadly, the results highlight how the governance and sharing of quasi‐public R&D infrastructure can shape private innovation.
Cao et al. (2026) studied this question.