When AI Meets Management: Capability Interactions and Export Performance in SRDI Firms

This study examines how digitally enabled firms with specialized, refined, differentiated and innovative (SRDI) firms in Taiwan integrate organizational capabilities, dynamic managerial capabilities (DMCs), and AI technologies to enhance export performance. Using survey data from 290 exporters, we test a moderated moderation model and find that organizational capabilities positively influence export intensity, with the effect amplified by strong DMCs. However, this amplifying role diminishes when AI capabilities are high, as algorithmic systems partially substitute for managerial adaptation. By focusing on agile, specialized start-ups competing in global value chains, the study reveals how SRDI firms navigate international markets through a balance of human and machine-based capabilities. It contributes to export and SRDI research by uncovering how different capability configurations shape strategic responses in the digital era.