The most important word in the technology industry is “innovation.” It is also the most dangerous.
Silicon Valley companies lobby for relief from government regulation and tax so they may innovate profitably. Privacy intrusions by social media or online advertising are seen as a cost of innovating, and a way to learn how these powerful new tools will fit in our lives.
It is not just that “innovation” is a word worn smooth from overuse. We treat innovation like an impersonal force, and a ceaseless outcome of entrepreneurship in tech. If we displace people or distort our culture with innovations that, say, wipe out local bookstores or measure every moment in a warehouse worker’s day, it is the price of a generally beneficial force.
Increasingly, however, economists and social thinkers are challenging the conventional wisdom on innovation. Speaking at the Institute for New Economic Thinking conference in Toronto this week, Mariana Mazzucato, a professor at the University of Sussex, described the most notable technology innovations as coming from the government, not the private sector.
“What made the iPhone ‘smart’ — GPS, touch screens, Siri, the Internet — was started by the government,” said Ms. Mazzucato. “The National Institutes of Health is responsible for creating the most revolutionary drugs.” Her recent book, The Entrepreneurial State , is about contributions the government has made to innovations Silicon Valley claims as its own.
“The government doesn’t just fix markets by leaving capital to do its thing, it creates them,” she said.
That is a fine thing, she added, except returns are increasingly going to entrepreneurs and their venture capital backers. As a result, basic government-backed research is increasingly underfunded, she said, and the broader society does not benefit from the investment made with their taxes.
Another problem with our current view of innovation is its culture of speed, and an increasing love affair with rapid change. “Venture capital has become increasingly short-term,” Ms. Mazzucato said. “Innovation takes 15 to 20 years in key technologies.”
Her sentiment was echoed by some members of the venture capital community. “We’re in a world where long-term thinking is maladaptive,” said Joon Yun, an evolutionary biologist and physician who is a managing partner at Palo Alto Investors. His own firm, he said, tries to hold its investments for a decade or more.
Even with specializing in longer-term investments, like biotech, it is difficult to hold things for a long time, he said, when public companies increasingly buy back shares with their cash, rather than investing it in things like research.
The Latest on: Innovation
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Innovation” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Innovation
- Innovation Lightbulb: What's Left of the CHIPS Act Funds?on May 8, 2024 at 6:41 am
In the first few months of 2024, the CHIPS Program Office has announced a flurry of preliminary memoranda of terms (PMTs) with major semiconductor manufacturing firms. As of this writing, eight awards ...
- Legacy of Innovation: Navigating the Challenges of a New Eraon May 8, 2024 at 6:32 am
As world institutions aim toward a carbon-free future, it is essential to recognize the crucial role that carbon has played in life and innovation. Carbon is a widely available element on our planet ...
- Regulatory Challenges In Drug Approval: Balancing Innovation And Patient Safetyon May 8, 2024 at 5:43 am
Navigating the complex landscape of drug approval presents significant regulatory challenges, requiring a delicate balance between fostering pharmaceutical innovation and ensuring patient safety. The ...
- NJ FAST fintech accelerator aims to aid innovation economy effortson May 8, 2024 at 5:10 am
"New Jersey’s first accelerator that is explicitly focused on fintech, NJ FAST will nurture a new generation of companies as well as new generation of jobs right here in the Garden State," Gov. Phil ...
- Factors to Note Ahead of Onto Innovation's (ONTO) Q1 Earningson May 8, 2024 at 5:10 am
ONTO Innovation ONTO is set to report first-quarter 2024 results on May 9. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter earnings per share (EPS) has been steady at $1.10 over the past 30 days, ...
- Rethinking IT Rationalization To Drive Efficiency And Innovationon May 8, 2024 at 4:45 am
However, it’s vital that cost-cutting is not the sole driver of decision-making; otherwise, companies run the risk that the short-term benefits incurred could limit growth and innovation in the longer ...
- AMD Receives IEEE 2024 Corporate Innovation Award for Leadership in Chiplet Design for High-Performance and Adaptive Computingon May 8, 2024 at 2:01 am
SANTA CLARA, Calif., May 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) received the prestigious 2024 Corporate Innovation Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) ...
- 50 years of innovation: Reflecting on a half century of Florida Studio Theatreon May 7, 2024 at 9:03 pm
Those who were around Sarasota in 1973 when Florida Studio Theatre began then left town for a while probably wouldn’t recognize the place today. The company was started by Jon Spelman to present ...
- Embracing product innovation beyond office wallson May 7, 2024 at 10:00 am
Distance need not hinder innovation. Instead, it catalyzes reshaping how teams collaborate and innovate in the digital age.
- How a Dedicated Innovation Team Can Tackle ‘Good Problems’on May 6, 2024 at 8:45 am
The London transportation agency’s unit has focused on the needs of the customer by leveraging existing assets and shifting from traditional procurement models to engage with private-sector innovators ...
via Bing News