From Lab to Market: A Computable General Equilibrium Analysis of Research Commercialization Policy in Thailand

As presently, the international market has become highly competitive, particularly for agricultural products and simple manufactured goods. This competitiveness affects newcomers and existing competitors, often weakening their market position. Therefore, improving production technology and innovation may be the solution to increasing market power by developing innovative products that are difficult for others to replicate, it could lead to sustainable market growth, especially for countries that rely heavily on exports. Thailand, one of the top four countries in ASEAN, has increasingly focused on research commercialization, particularly in deep science and technology, to enhance productivity and competitiveness in the global market. However, there is still insufficient evidence regarding the economic outcomes of these policy promotions in Thailand. Therefore, this paper aims to provide evidence of policy outcomes after adoption of technology by presenting a scenario and investigating it through a static computable general equilibrium approach. The findings of this paper indicate that technology adoption and improvement have the potential to expand the economy by increasing market competitiveness for both domestic and international markets, especially in the service sectors. Moreover, the optimal rate of technology adoption for transforming the economy could be approximately 1.5 percent points. This paper suggests that the government should play a key role in facilitating investment in new technologies, whether through policy or regulation to encourage industries to replace outdated technology with newer ones. Additionally, the government could act as a facilitator in connecting industries with university research outputs or supporting new start-up businesses with deep technology.