This book contributes to our understanding of the reasons for the uneven geographic emergence and distribution of innovative start-ups and human capital, analyzing the role of the regional knowledge base and specifically academic knowledge. Using extensive datasets from West German regions and advanced econometric tools, it confirms a strong relationship between the presence of higher education institutions and the emergence of innovative start-ups. It also shows that the influence increases in direct relation with the innovativeness of the respective start-up, and that certain fields of...