Green Innovation as a Catalyst for Enhancing Entrepreneurial Performance: The Mediating Roles of R&D, Artificial Intelligence, and Competitive Advantage Through Sustainable Practices
Abstract
The study investigates the impact of green innovation on entrepreneurial performance across social, environmental, and economic dimensions. By prioritizing eco-friendly initiatives, businesses can drive change that extends beyond their walls, influencing consumers and competitors alike. As this momentum builds, the collective impact on reducing carbon footprints and conserving natural resources becomes increasingly profound, underscoring the importance of shared responsibility in addressing global challenges. The independent variable being used is green innovation, which includes green economic performance, green environmental performance, and green social performance. Artificial intelligence (AI), competitive advantage, and research and development (R&D) are being investigated as mediating factors that influence how green innovation affects overall business success. Empirical evidence confirms that green innovation significantly enhances both financial and environmental outcomes for firms. More specifically, green innovation not only improves environmental and economic performance but also competitive superiority, which can enable firms to address the demands of markets and legislation in terms of sustainability more effectively. The mediating role of R&D expenditure is shown to be an important vehicle whereby green innovation becomes improved business performance, as it makes innovation and adoption of advanced sustainable technology possible. Similarly, the adoption of AI augments the positive effect of green innovation. Competitive advantage then becomes a cause and a mediator, as green innovation helps firms differentiate themselves in more sustainability-conscious markets, which then improves business performance. In total, results indicate that green innovation, supported by strong R&D, cutting-edge AI, and strategic pursuit of competitive edge, improves business performance considerably on economic, environmental, and social fronts. This emphasizes the need for companies to invest in green technology, create innovation-friendly environments, and utilize digital transformation to realize sustainable entrepreneurial performance in a changing global environment.
Keywords: Green innovation, Green Economic Performance, Green Environmental Performance, Green Social Performance, R&D, Artificial Intelligence, Competitive Advantage, Business Performance
