<span>This paper examines the nature, evolution, and effects of potential and realized economic and industrial knowledge sharing through the comparison and contrast of two bioscience industrial regional clusters at different stages of development. The paper draws conclusions on research related to effects of knowledge spillover, regional innovation systems, knowledge management, and social network theory. Building on previous qualitative research, we argue that knowledge absorption and spillovers comprise a critical factor in the evolution of specialized knowledge in regional industrial clusters in biotech industries. Although bioscience industrial clusters have been widely researched in the last decade, the nature of </span><span>knowledge creation and dissemination as a driving force for industrial cluster competitiveness remains unclear. A better appreciation of specialized knowledge creation and spillover as determinants of industrial cluster success, and the role of foreign direct investment may be of value to industry decision makers, policy makers, and researchers. Our research reveals that contrary to extant research, spatial structure is not a significant factor in knowledge creation and dissemination process in the two clusters studied here. Firm-level knowledge absorption capabilities, social networks, and knowledge spillovers mechanisms, in contrast, are significantly correlated to the formation of specialized knowledge in both the clusters.</span>