Monday, March 23, 2009

uneven

The future is already here - it is just unevenly distributed.- William Gibson

I've been pondering Sean & Ellen's discussion around explicit, tacit & latent needs. It tied to some thinking I've been doing around innovation.

We expect innovation to come from high-tech research labs because that's where the dollars and the brains are. But that's fundamentally wrong. Innovation comes from where the challenges are. Human beings are generally quite lazy and don't want to learn or change. We only do that when we have to.

You want to find out about a possible future of finance in a resource-constrained world? You'd be better off looking in Bangladesh than Wall Street. Innovation is driven by need. You want the future? Follow the need.

It also suggests that in meeting latent needs, we need to cocreate the solutions with the people feeling the problem. Easier all round really.

Still thinking. More soon.

5 comments:

Barry Saunders said...

very interesting. I think this goes to the humanities approach to understanding tech innovation - that simultaneous invention (algebra, tv, flight) is a function of social need, not a function of the brilliant lone inventor.

Matt M said...

Absolutely. It also suggests that innovation is all about "noticing". Those who are good at innovating are firstly good at noticing - or put themselves in situations where they notice more.

Barry Saunders said...

and, of course, *the street finds its own use for things*

innovation is as often about finding a use for existing tech as it is about creating new tech.

http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/network/2002/04/16/cory.html

Pesce has a good take on this idea and cell phones here: http://blog.futurestreetconsulting.com/?p=37

Matt M said...

Oddly enough that very quote was going thru my head as I clicked on your comment.

And lovely articles, both of them.

Nice work Barry S.

This actually ties into some more thinking I've been doing around different models of innovation - and the importance of entrepreneurship.

Curse you, Barry S. You have forced my hand...

Barry Saunders said...

bwa ha ha ha. *rubs hands with glee*