The innovation networks of city‐regions in Europe: exclusive clubs or inclusive hubs?

Abstract Which role do city‐regions play in European innovation network formation? We study the evolution of innovation collaborative networks in European city‐regions outlining two opposite models: in the exclusive network model city‐regions establish a closed network of innovators among themselves; in the inclusive network models city‐regions build a network of innovators which includes the peripheral regions. Employing a Temporal Exponential random graph model on 248 regions in the period 2000‐2016, we find that the two models coexist. We conclude that in the EU the city‐regions act as both engines of generation of innovation and integrators of innovation actors.