How AI-Driven User–Producer Interaction Fuels Interconnected Innovation: A Knowledge Exchange and Integration Perspective

In the rapid diffusion of artificial intelligence (AI), firms increasingly rely on AI to reshape user interactions, yet how such interactions translate into sustained innovation remains unclear. Adopting a user–producer interaction perspective, this study examines how AI-Driven User–Producer Interaction (ADUPI) affects User–Producer Interconnected Innovation (UPII), focusing on the mediating roles of User–Producer Knowledge Exchange (UPKE) and User–Producer Knowledge Integration (UPKI), as well as the moderating effect of AI Readiness (AIR). Using survey data from 974 firms and applying regression, mediation, moderation, and bootstrap analyses, the findings show that ADUPI significantly enhances UPII. Moreover, UPKE and UPKI jointly mediate this relationship, forming a dual mediation mechanism in which knowledge integration exerts a stronger effect than knowledge exchange. In addition, AIR positively moderates the effects of ADUPI on both UPKE and UPKI, amplifying innovation outcomes under higher AI readiness. This study advances AI and innovation research by shifting the focus from internal firm capabilities to cross-actor interaction, clarifying differentiated knowledge mechanisms, and highlighting AI readiness as a key condition for value realization. The results also provide actionable insights for firms seeking to convert AI-driven interaction into interconnected innovation through improved AI readiness and knowledge management.