Redefining the entrepreneurial discovery process for smarter specialization in Europe

The objective of this paper is to propose a revision of the Entrepreneurial Discovery Process (EDP) as a key driver in the Smart Specialization Strategy (S3) policy framework. To this end, the paper makes three major contributions. First, drawing on recent contributions that redefine entrepreneurship as a quasi-scientific process based on experimentation, we redefine the role and process of EDP within the S3 policy framework. Second, by referring to the concepts of the adjacent possible and speciation, we revise the scope of the discovery process, overcoming the traditional trade-off between technological relatedness and unrelatedness. Third, we address the implications of these changes in the context of the innovation gap between knowledge-intensive and lagging-behind regions in the EU.