Rakesh Basant is a former Professor of Economics and JSW Professor of Innovation and Public Policy at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIMA). He has taught at universities abroad and worked as a consultant to several international organizations. Professor Basant’s teaching and research interests focus on firm strategy, innovation, intellectual property rights, entrepreneurial business models, public policy & regulation. His recent research has focused on capability building processes in industrial clusters, foreign direct investment in R&D, innovation- internationalization linkages, competition policy, inter-organizational linkages for technology development (especially academia-industry relationships), incubation models in higher education institutions, emerging entrepreneurial patterns and ecosystem in India, strategic and policy aspects of intellectual property rights, linkages between public policy and technological change, economics of strategy, the small scale sector in India and policy issues in higher education. He was also a member of the Indian Prime Minister’s High-Level Committee (also known as Sachar Committee) that wrote a report on the Social, Economic and Educational Conditions of Muslims in India. In continuation of this work, a part of his current research focuses on issues relating to Muslims, especially affirmative action in higher education. Prof Basant’s recent book ‘The Black Box – Innovation and Public Policy in India’ was published by Penguin in August 2021.