They could, but they won't. The private sector is allergic to such long-term investments with no clear path to profitability. And why would they fund research i

They could, but they won't. The private sector is allergic to such long-term investments with no clear path to profitability. And why would they fund research if their competitors could just as easily monetize its potential results ? They rely on publicly funded labs to make the real innovations and do the last (but nonetheless important) mile of bringing it to the public.