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East Asia is the origin and target market for an increasing number of technological innovations. We use the East Asian automotive industry as a focal point to discuss central questions of innovation research such as modularity, product architecture, and the dynamics of state sponsorship in national innovation systems. Two developments in the East Asian automotive industry are of particular interest to the broader innovation community: 1) East Asian firms and consumers are forerunners in the current transition to energy-efficient innovations and the future of automobiles. These technological developments will lead to a ‘hybridization’ of product architectures that need to be reflected in firm's competitive strategies. 2) Particularly in China, the role of the state for national innovation systems is pronounced in the automotive sector. The way national and regional frameworks interact with broader technology trends shapes …