NanoInnovation: What Every Manager Needs to Know

8International Perspectives

I see nanotech as a great bridge builder, enabling us to make disruptive innovations across conventional boundaries.

– Dr. Anita Goel, MD, Ph.D., Founder, Chairman and CEO, Nanobiosym

You may have noticed that the nanoinnovators described throughout this book come from many different countries. Scientists and students engaged in cutting-edge nanotech research come from Australia, Brazil, China, Egypt, Iran, Israel, India, Korea, Russia, Sri Lanka, and many others – representing every corner of the world. If you look at the authors cited in the endnotes of this book, you will see a wide array of ethnic origins. Truly, nanotechnology is an international realm.

In the 1990s, nanotechnology was considered an expensive novelty in many countries, so in 2001 it was considered a bold move when the United States became the first country to launch a national nanotechnology initiative with public funding of $464 million for nanoscale R&D. Within a few years, more than one-third of all countries established their own initiatives. In the decade from 2000 to 2010, national governments invested >US$67 billion in nanotechnology research. Today, >60 countries support national nanotechnology initiatives. The global nanoinnovation ecosystem is well established, and we are beginning to reap the rewards.

It is important to note that the globalization of nanotechnology did not begin with the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) in the United States, although the ...