Abstract:

Industry 4.0, the digitalization process, has established the basis of economic activities on information gathering and processing. This situation also increases and facilitates commercial activities. In this context, researching the effects of Industry 4.0 on economies is very important in today's digital age. The effects of the Industry 4.0 revolution on economic growth is an issue that needs to be researched in the context of understanding the economic, social and sectoral consequences of the relevant transformation. With these researches, policy makers and businesses can be guided in their strategic decision-making and provide competitive advantage potentials. This study aims to investigate the effects of Industry 4.0 on economic growth using panel data analysis method for 18 countries with strategies and targets related to this transformation. In the estimation of the established models, the annual data set from 2000 to 2019 were used. In the study, while the dependent variable is the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita representing economic growth, the independent variables are the number of patent applications, medium and high technology exports, and information communication technology exports, which are the variables representing Industry 4.0. The conclusion reached in the study is that the increase in the share of patent applications, the medium and high-tech exports in the long term increases per capita income.

Keywords: