Ning Luo is a Research Associate at the Center for Science, Technology and Innovation Policy, Institute for Manufacturing (IfM). Her research interests broadly cover government intervention in science, technology, and innovation with multiple policy instruments, international comparative studies of national innovation systems, strategic human capital in firm and geographical contexts, and entrepreneurship.

Ning’s research lies at the intersection of innovation economics, public policy, and regional development. She analyses how policy instruments, financial flows, and the mobility of skilled professionals affect the performance of innovation ecosystems. Specifically, her work examines the roles of financial capital, such as foreign direct investment, venture capital, government subsidies, and public research funding, in innovation capacity. She also investigates how talent mobility, including the return of scientists and skilled migrants, influences firms and regions, and how policy frameworks and intermediaries strengthen entrepreneurship and knowledge transfer. Through comparative, cross-national perspectives and mixed-method approaches, Ning provides policymakers with evidence-based insights into how institutional contexts shape innovation and entrepreneurial outcomes.

Ning has secured and contributed to multiple competitive research grants funded by national and international funding bodies. These projects have investigated policy evaluation frameworks for innovation ecosystems, the effectiveness of talent recruitment programs in emerging economies, and global science, technology and innovation policy comparisons.

Before joining the IfM, Ning earned her PhD in Public Policy at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), specialising in Innovation Policy and Entrepreneurship. She also holds a Master’s in Public Policy from HKUST and dual undergraduate degrees in Management and Economics from Donghua University and East China Normal University, respectively, in Shanghai, China.