Internationalisation of AI-driven healthcare startups: An assessment of the potential impact of institutional characteristics on the internationalisation of AI-driven healthcare startups in a complex business environment
Authors
Laursen, Frederik Gravgaard ; Walczak, Michael ; Ellingsgaard, Tróndur
Term
4. Semester
Publication year
2022
Submitted on
2022-06-01
Abstract
This thesis investigates how institutional characteristics influence the internationalisation of AI-driven healthcare startups and whether they lead to strategic shifts when entering foreign markets. Using Business System Theory as the core framework, we examine logical and causal links between institutional environments and firms’ business system characteristics in a complex, highly regulated industry. Focusing on Danish AI-healthcare startups expanding into the US, we conduct a comparative case study of two companies. The study combines secondary sources with primary data from interviews with C-level executives in the case firms and a healthcare industry expert. We identify four institutional factors with major influence on market entry: regulation, the structure of the healthcare market, institutions supporting AI development, and stakeholder/public attitudes toward AI products. Our findings indicate a strong relationship between host-country institutions and firms’ adaptations in entry mode, market-entry timing, access to market knowledge, and partnership orientation, while home-country institutions also underpin internationalisation. Although the cases share similarities, they respond differently to some institutional conditions. The study contributes by connecting AI-healthcare, startup, and international business literatures and offers practical insights and avenues for future research.
Denne afhandling undersøger internationalisering af AI-drevne sundhedsstartups og om, samt hvordan, institutionelle karakteristika påvirker deres strategier ved indtræden på udenlandske markeder. Med udgangspunkt i Business System Theory analyserer vi de logiske og kausale sammenhænge mellem institutionelle forhold og virksomheders forretningssystemkarakteristika i en kompleks og højt reguleret branche. Undersøgelsen er forankret i danske AI-sundhedsstartups, der går ind på det amerikanske marked, og bygger på et komparativt casestudie af to virksomheder. Datagrundlaget kombinerer sekundære kilder med primære data fra interviews med topledere i de undersøgte virksomheder samt en brancheekspert. Vi identificerer fire institutionelle forhold med særlig betydning for markedsindtræden: regulering, sundhedsvæsenets opbygning, institutioner der understøtter AI-udvikling samt markedets og offentlighedens holdninger til produkterne. Fundene peger på en stærk sammenhæng mellem værtslandets institutionelle rammer og tilpasninger i virksomhedernes valg af entry mode, timing, adgang til markedsviden og samarbejdsvilje, samtidig med at hjemlandets institutioner medvirker til at understøtte internationaliseringen. Selvom cases deler ligheder, reagerer de forskelligt på visse forhold. Studiet bidrager ved at binde litteratur om AI-sundhed, startups og internationalisering sammen og skitserer implikationer og retninger for fremtidig forskning.
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