The impact of AI capability on breakthrough technological innovation in China: a perspective of value co-creation within innovation ecosystems

This study aims to uncover the mechanism through which artificial intelligence (AI) capability influences breakthrough technological innovation within the context of innovation ecosystems. Based on 201 survey responses collected from Chinese enterprises, the research model was tested using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM). The findings demonstrate that AI capability positively influences both high-end and low-end breakthrough technological innovations, with ecosystem value co-creation serving as a mediating mechanism. These results illuminate the black box of how AI capability affects breakthrough technological innovation and provide new insights for open innovation research in the AI era.