Science, Technology & Society 16:1 (2011): 11–28 SAGE Publications Los Angeles/London/New Delhi/Singapore/Washington DC DOI: 10.1177/097172181001600102 Two Models of Research Technology Organisations in Asia PATARAPONG INTARAKUMNERD This article presents two models of research and technology organisations (RTOs) in latecomer countries undergoing technological catch-up. The RTOs in Model A tried to stimulate the accumulation of technological and innovative capabilities ‘within’ firms. In contrast, the RTOs in Model B attempted to create technological capabilities ‘on behalf of firms’. The models have produced different results. Case studies of Taiwan’s Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) and Thailand’s National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) are used as representatives of the two models. Keywords: Research and Technology Organisations, Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA), Asia Introduction SINCE THE 1980s, the concept of the ‘National Innovation System’ (NIS) advanced by seminal scholars like Christopher Freeman, Richard Nelson and Bengt-Ake Lundvall has emerged as a ‘historically friendly’ and ‘holistic’ tool for analysing why some countries have been successful in their industrial development and technological catch-up whereas others have not. An NIS is an interactive system of existing actors, including private and public firms (both large and small), uni- versities, government agencies and others, that aim to produce, diffuse and utilise knowledge within national borders. Previous studies have shown that advanced countries have historically had capable actors and systemic linkages, which resulted in intensive technological learning and rapid advancement. Most developing countries, in contrast, have had weak actors and a fragmented system, causing them to fall behind technologically. Nonetheless, some late-industrialising countries such as Japan and the East Asian NIEs (South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore and Hong Kong) that were once developing countries themselves have effectively developed national innovation systems to enable technological and industrial upgrades. Patarapong Intarakumnerd, College of Innovation, Thammasat University, Prachan Road, Bangkok, 10200, Thailand. E-mail: prpu6@h otmail.com