Abstract
As an important strategic emerging industry for building a strong maritime nation, the enhancement of its industrial R&D and innovation capability are always the key driving force for the high-quality development of the marine biomedical industry (MBI). Under the vigorously development of digital economy, the application of digital technology (DT) brings new impetus to the innovation development of MBI. So it is necessary to explore the impact of DT on the innovation efficiency of MBI (MBIIE). Taking eleven coastal provinces and cities as an example, this paper measures the development level of DT (DTTL) with entropy method, and the MBIIE with SBM model. On this basis, it empirically test the impact of DT on the MBIIE by constructing benchmark regression, mediation effect, and moderating effect models. The study results shows that DT can significantly enhance the MBIIE by optimizing the allocation of capital and labor resources, and improving the degree of marketization of factors and products; government attention to DT can positively modulate the effect of DT on MBIIE. This study could help enrich the empirical evidence of the impact of DT on the MBIIE at the theoretical level. And it could provide corresponding countermeasures at the practical level to further promote the MBIIE empowered by DT.