How Does Digital Transformation Promote Low-Carbon Technology Innovation? The Case of Chinese Manufacturing Companies

Abstract

Under the Chinese government’s carbon neutral target, digital transformation enabling low-carbon technology innovation has become an innovative starting point to promote the new development concept. We use data from a sample of 270 manufacturing companies in 30 provinces and cities in China, this paper constructs an analysis framework of low-carbon technology innovation in manufacturing driven by digital transformation with knowledge reconstruction as the intermediary variable and knowledge sharing as the regulating variable, and empirically explores the impact of digital transformation on low-carbon technology innovation. It is found that the digital transformation of the manufacturing industry has a significant positive impact on low-carbon technology innovation, and is an important power source to promote low-carbon technology innovation. Knowledge reconstruction plays a part of intermediary role between digital transformation and low-carbon technology innovation, and plays a key role as a bridge. Knowledge sharing plays a positive role in digital transformation, knowledge reconstruction and low-carbon technology innovation. The research clarified the differences and suitability in the process of low-carbon technology innovation in the digitally enabled manufacturing industry and answered the question of how to effectively use knowledge management to realize digitalization and help the industrial low-carbon innovation and upgrading in the digital economy era, which has important reference significance for guiding the green and high-quality development of the industry.