The research of the processes of knowledge generation in high-tech industries by means of the use of an institutional approach for modeling the system for the formation of new knowledge is an important task for increasing the efficiency of innovative development of economic entities. The article is devoted to the development of a new economic conceptthe resource potential of knowledge generation and empirical testing of its applicability for high-tech production of complex products in the digital economy. The methodological basis of the research is based on the theoretical concepts of strategic management, institutional economic theory. A theoretical analysis of study approaches of factors increasing the use of various types of resources in high-tech enterprises has been carried out. The authors have developed a methodology for assessing the generation of knowledge in the innovation activities of instrument-making enterprises of the military-industrial complex based on the use of functional analysis, which made it possible to establish relationships and dependencies between the resources of an enterprise and the product life cycle. The authors have proposed a schematic image and a formalized filling of the theoretical potential of using the resources for the generation of knowledge of a manufacturing enterprise, which allows to evaluate the capabilities of an enterprise in the implementation of intellectual activity. As a result of the empirical research conducted by the authors at a large Russian enterprise of the military-industrial complex, the actual distribution of resources at each of the seven stages of the life cycle of a complex product was revealed. Comparison of the theoretical and actual potentials of the application of knowledge generation resources allowed us to determine the direction of optimizing the use of resources for the most effective introduction of new products. The research results have an applied nature and can serve as a basis of a strategy for the development of industrial enterprises.