Long-term innovative potential of genetic research and its suppression

Current technological revolutions, involving artificial intelligence, mRNA vaccines, and quantum computing, are largely driven by industry. Despite the existing perception that commercial motives promote cutting-edge innovation, concerns may arise about their risk of limiting scientific exploration from diverse perspectives, which nurtures long-term innovative potential. Here, we investigate the interplay between scientific exploration and industrial influence by analyzing about 20 million papers and US, Chinese, and European patents in genetic research, a domain of far-reaching societal importance. We observe that research on new genes has declined since the early 2000s, but the exploration of novel gene combinations still underpins biotechnology innovation. Fields of highly practical or commercial focus are less likely to adopt the innovative approaches, exhibiting lower research vitality. Additionally, continuous scientific research creates exploratory opportunities for innovation, while industrys R&D efforts are typically short-lived. Alarmingly, up to 42.2-74.4% of these exploratory opportunities could be lost if scientific research is restrained by industry interests, highlighting the cost of over-reliance on commercially-driven research. Given the industrys dominance in recent technologies, our work calls for a balanced approach with long-term scientific exploration to preserve innovation vitality, unlock the full potential of genetic research and biotechnology, and address complex global challenges.