China is developing a defense innovation system (DIS) as part of a broader effort to construct a national innovation system (NIS) that incorporates a system-of-systems approach. Modeled on China’s commercial-sector economic development zones and investment strategies, the DIS is focused on enhancing integration and interaction among key defense industry actors, institutions, industry sectors, and regions, both domestic and international. Although serious obstacles remain to realizing an effective DIS, China is laying the foundation for a dual-use DIS that employs both top-down development strategies and fosters greater bottom-up, market-driven, innovation dynamics.

This brief highlights key points on three Chinese government and military organizations involved in managing defense science, technology, and industry: 1) the State Council’s State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (SASTIND); 2) the General Armament Department (GAD) of the People’s Liberation Army; and 3) the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology’s Civil–Military Integration Promotion Department (CMIPD). This brief calls attention to important ongoing organizational reforms in Chinese defense science, technology and industry by discussing 1) the post-2008 division of responsibilities between SASTIND and CMIPD; 2) GAD’s role in the defense industries and PLA defense research; and 3) civil–military integration (CMI) in the Chinese defense science, technology and industry system.