The mechanisms underlying the emergence of innovation ecosystems: the case of the AI ecosystem in Montreal

Scholars have increasingly been using ecosystem as a concept within and beyond social science, but less is known about how ecosystems emerge. In this study, we investigate the context of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) ecosystem in Montreal to understand the mechanisms underlying the emergence of innovation ecosystems. Building on the work of Ostrom and the literature on innovation commons and conducting content analysis and network analyses, we find empirical evidence for a bottom-up approach in the emergence of the AI ecosystem in Montreal. We find that the main mechanism underlying the emergence of innovation ecosystems in Montreal is the articulation of a series of innovation commons by commoners. Our findings have implications for understanding the importance of emerging technologies and the digitalization of industries and for identifying regional innovation capabilities.