Small-scale improvements to existing products, services, or processes that enhance efficiency or value.

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Includes the generation of new ideas (ideation) and the implementation of those ideas.

Innovation

Incremental Innovation

An innovation that creates a new market and value network, eventually displacing established market-leading firms, products, and alliances.

Disruptive Innovation

Early-stage companies characterized by innovative ideas, rapid growth, and scalable business models.

Start-ups

A general-purpose technology (GPT) is a foundational innovation that has a pervasive impact across many sectors of an economy. Key characteristics of a GPT include its widespread applicability, its continuous potential for technical improvement, and its capacity to spawn further innovations in products, processes, and business organization. By fundamentally transforming economic structures, GPTs like the steam engine and the internet serve as major engines of long-term economic growth and improvements in living standards.

General-Purpose Technology (GPT)

The Industrial Revolution in 18th-century Britain was driven by significant technological advancements, particularly within the textile industry. These innovations transformed traditional production methods, such as spinning (historically done by women, or 'spinsters') and weaving (historically done by men). Key inventions from this era, like the flying shuttle and the spinning jenny, were central to this economic transformation.

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