Democratizing Innovation

“When the cost of high-quality resources for design and prototyping becomes very low . . . the net result is and will be to democratize the opportunity to create.”

—Eric von Hippel

It is getting easier—far easier—for individuals and small groups to innovate.

Eric von Hippel has been chronicling this trend for decades. He first observed how much users innovate and found surprising results. In some industries, over 80 percent of the functionally new innovations were created by users. Manufacturers made them mass market-ready, but users did the invention. As he studied the phenomenon, he observed something unexpected: users were willing to freely reveal their inventions. They invented to solve a problem to meet a need that they had, not to profit from the invention. In many cases, users joined together in innovation communities where they share their passion and their designs.

The Internet accelerated user innovation by making it possible for users with a passion for almost anything to find one another and to work together to innovate. Open-source software, open-source hardware, and open biology communities emerged and continue to grow. Applications range from Linux and Apache (software) to RepRap (3D printing), Raspberry Pi (computing hardware), and prosthetics. Many have been reported on in these pages. Von Hippel coined the term “democratizing innovation” to capture this phenomenon—the increasing ease with which almost anyone can innovate and take their idea from notion to reality.

The continued evolution of two technologies, in particular, is pushing the democratization of innovation even further. The first of these technologies is 3D printing, which enables small-scale production of complex parts at home or on the net. The other is generative AI, which has hit the world like a cyclone over the past six months. The innovative applications of generative AI are only beginning to be discovered. Articles in this issue provide insights on these technologies and on their application.

Bardia Naghshineh, Miguel Fragoso, and Helena Carvalho, in “Rethinking Additive Manufacturing for Spare Parts Supply Chain Management,” discuss the adoption of 3D printing for spare parts. Additive manufacturing enables a rethinking of the supply chain and who manages what inventory. The advantages of local, on-demand production of spare parts is of particular value when there are many parts and the demand for them is uncertain. With applications like this, 3D printing moves from prototyping to production. With every advance in the technology—in speed, materials, design tools, and analytics—it moves closer to becoming a viable alternative for mass production. In the meantime, niche applications like spare parts manufacturing provide a useful foothold.

In “The Transformative Potential of Generative AI,” this issue’s interview, I discuss the surprising power of generative AI tools with Ethan Mollick, a professor of innovation and entrepreneurship at the University of Pennsylvania. Mollick has been experimenting widely with generative AI tools—including ChatGPT-4, Midjourney, DALL-E 2, and Bing AI—and sharing his findings on his blog One Useful Thing. His experiments reveal both the range of application and the limitations of the technology, drawing examples from marketing, writing, ideation, innovation, programming, and data analytics. Mollick sees generative AI as perhaps the most transformative technology since the printing press—and one that will empower those who are willing to experiment with it. His examples, many of which are documented in depth in his blog, are stunning—and inspiring.

In their article “Is ‘Cutting-Edge’ Good? Assessing Product Newness Factors in Technologically Turbulent Environments,” Michael Obal, Todd Morgan, and Wesley Friske ask an interesting question: When is a product too cutting edge to be successfully adopted? They analyzed 423 firms “to better understand how both product newness to the firm and product newness to the customer impact NPD performance.” Their key finding is that “customers need some turbulence to adopt new innovations that are dissimilar to their prior usage experiences.” Their results beg another question: What if tools like 3D printing and generative AI could enable mass customization of offerings in collaboration with users? Perhaps users could effectively choose the degree of newness that was meaningful to them.

Finally, Kathryn Trauth Taylor and her coauthors discuss “The Impact of Storytelling on Innovation Success” in their paper based on research with IRI members. Their study concludes that storytelling is believed to be very important to innovation success and yet is often poorly executed. They present evidence on “the importance, impact, return on investment, and best practices of innovation storytelling.” Interestingly, generative AI tools can help with creating effective stories. Taylor, in fact, has recently launched Narratize, a tool that uses AI to craft a pitch document.

As innovation devolves to the edges, companies will have to experiment to understand the implications of these new tools for their businesses. Many applications are low-hanging fruit: using ChatGPT and Midjourney to spark creativity; using ChatGPT to write and debug programs; iterating with ChatGPT to write clear prose. You can start experimenting with these immediately.

It is important, however, to think more deeply about the implications of this technology for the design of work in your organization. How will 3D printing and generative AI change the design space for products? How will they change the research process itself? In his blog, Mollick shares an example from Carnegie Mellon University of a system that can design and synthesize chemicals, including the setup of the necessary lab equipment. It greatly speeds up experimentation. Researchers need to ask which of their most important processes can be similarly automated. And further, where can the speed of iteration improve the quality of the results?

There are even deeper structural issues, as well. How will additive manufacturing affect the allocation of roles between manufacturers and their users? How will the locus of R&D shift as the barriers to innovation drop? von Hippel has studied companies that try to fight user involvement in R&D; companies that actively collaborate with user communities; and companies that (eventually) outsource some design and innovation functions to users. These decisions have implications for everything from intellectual property to liability to competitive strategy. Different choices will make sense in different industries, but the dramatic reduction in barriers to innovate are likely to affect everyone.

Expect the challenges to accelerate. The time to experiment is now.

Research-Technology Management seeks submissions

CALL FOR PAPERS: Special Issue: Innovation People, Teams and Culture

Submission Due Date: Beginning March 1, 2023

Review process: On a rolling basis beginning March 31, 2023

Research-Technology Management welcomes articles that explore the people and teams engaged in innovation and shifts in innovation culture.

Companies are operating in a VUCA world—one characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. The world of work is very different compared to just five years ago. Remote work, which became a necessity because of the COVID-19 pandemic, is now a reality, and requirement, by larger numbers of staff. And technology is advancing so quickly, it’s hard to keep pace. The Great Resignation has created a war for talent.

RTM is actively seeking papers on the following topics:

Unique approaches companies are using to attract and retain innovation talent (hiring and onboarding practices; balancing the needs of different employees, remote work policies, etc.)

Novel management strategies and training and development tactics companies are using with innovation staff

How companies are adapting or reshaping their innovation culture to fit the new work and business environment

Ways companies can ensure effective collaboration and engagement for innovation in a remote/hybrid environment

How companies can capture important institutional knowledge and transfer it to the next generation

The best strategies to deal with IP issues in an increasingly digital world

The ways companies can engage with R&D researchers at academic institutions and startups to complement internal talent and R&D

Papers and case studies should highlight specific, firsthand examples of how companies are adapting their workforce, their workplace culture, and their R&D and innovations processes. Submissions should include data on the practices, companies’ experience with them (positive and negative), adaptations to make them successful, and managerial lessons learned.

RTM articles are concise and practice oriented. Ideal submissions offer concrete examples and data to support theories about invention and innovation, the management of technology and capabilities to support innovation. Successful submissions will offer readers practical information they can put to work immediately.

We prefer submissions at around 4,000–4,500 words, although we will occasionally publish truly groundbreaking pieces as long as 5,000 words. Articles should be submitted via our Editorial Manager system at http://www.editorial manager.com/rtm/. For submission requirements and author’s guidelines, visit us at www.tandfonline.com/urtm.

For more information about this call or to join our email list to receive notification when calls for papers are released, please email RTM’s managing editor, Tammy McCausland, at [email protected].

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jim Euchner

Jim Euchner is editor-in-chief of Research-Technology Management. He previously held senior management positions in the leadership of innovation at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Pitney Bowes Corporation, and Bell Atlantic. He holds BS and MS degrees in mechanical and aerospace engineering from Cornell and Princeton Universities, respectively, and an MBA from Southern Methodist University. Jim is the author of Lean Startup in Large Organizations: Overcoming Organizational Resistance, published by Productivity Press. [email protected]