Ayaz Zeynalov on Why Copying Isn’t Enough and How Countries Reach the Technological Frontier (EN)
How do countries grow — and why do some make it to the technological frontier while others get stuck halfway there?
In this episode of Horizont VŠE , our guest Ayaz Zeynalov , economist and author of the study Innovation vs. Imitation: How to Reach the Technological Frontier , explains how nations initially develop by imitating foreign technologies , but eventually must innovate on their own to keep advancing. Otherwise, they risk falling into the so-called middle-income trap .
We discuss:
-
what the “technological frontier” really means and why it’s so hard to reach,
-
why imitation-driven growth eventually runs out of steam,
-
and how education, institutions, and business dynamics shape a country’s path toward innovation.
A conversation about where imitation ends and true progress begins — and why it matters to all of us.