Digital Technology Innovation and the New Quality Productivity of Chinese Enterprises: Evidence from Enterprise’s Digital Patents

Digital technological innovation, the cornerstone of the latest scientific and industrial revolutions, is gradually becoming the foundation of China’s robust economic growth. By examining the impact of digital technology innovation on enterprise new quality productivity and its mechanisms, this research offers theoretical insights and empirical evidence to offer policy-making for digital technology innovation and strategic decision-making for enterprise digital development. Using text analysis to identify firms’ digital patents, we measure the level of digital technology innovation. Subsequently, we employ econometric methods to empirically investigate the impact of digital technology innovation on an enterprise’s new quality productivity and its mechanisms. Our findings revealed the following: (1) Digital technology innovation can significantly promote the development of an enterprise’s new quality productivity. After a series of robustness checks, the promoting effect of digital technology innovation on an enterprise’s new quality productivity remains robust. (2) Heterogeneity tests reveal that the impact of digital technology innovation on an enterprise’s new quality productivity varies significantly owing to differences in the nature of the firms and their geographical locations. (3) Nonlinear tests indicate that the impact of digital technology innovation on an enterprise’s new quality productivity differs significantly across various quantiles. (4) Regarding the mechanism of action, digital technology innovation can promote the development of an enterprise’s new quality productivity through total factor productivity (TFP), green technology innovation, and the specialization and division of labor within firms. However, its role in optimizing production factor allocation remains inconclusive. The research provides practical insights for enterprises to implement digital technology innovation and holds significant importance in motivating government actions aimed at enhancing policies for achieving new quality productivity of enterprises. Consequently, our research furnishes empirical and theoretical foundations for policymakers.