Disruptive Technology can be defined as the application of tactics or strategy in the market economy that disrupts business models and/or social infrastructure, competition, or old patterns.
Disruptive technology is still new or unsophisticated to most companies and consumers. It also possesses qualities that make it more valuable to some segments than others. So, while disruptive technology might not affect all businesses negatively, it may yet disrupt their overseas counterparts. Disruption will always shake up customers and often has long-term impacts on their mindsets, functions, and behaviors. They are about transforming the status quo of customers and seeing it accommodated in a new light.
The innovative ability of disruptive technologies is what gained the attention of so many developers, business owners, and enterprises. However, it’s not just these groups that benefit most from these technologies. Capturing this opportunity are also customers whose lives are fundamentally enhanced by how they work with machines. When customers use machines to perform their tasks, their results are less error-prone because of less human error.
Why is Disruptive Innovation so Important?
The idea of disruptive innovation is not new – for centuries thinkers have studied the phenomenon, it is just that now more businesses seem to be interested in it. It not only influences large corporations but startups and investors as well.
In the past decade, disruptive technologies have made it easier for people to access the internet. It has also led to changes in how customers interact and respond to businesses. Novel retail store models and means of delivery service are among the technological innovations that have provided substantial change to businesses today. Disruptive product innovation has disrupted certain positions of power, in a given marketplace.
Recently, there has been a rise in e-commerce retail stores. But there are certain business models like Target, Walmart, and Best Buy which have both traditional brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce sites. With this combined model, they are competing with Amazon, which has used artificial intelligence and automated control systems to disrupt the online retail space. The idea of disruptive technology for Amazon revolved around how well they use the technology, instead of cost. If they had not invented and adopted the cloud early on, they could not have expanded the way they do right now.
Types of Disruptive Technology
Two types of patterns keep on producing new technologies and trends.
- Sustaining technology
This technology is designed for an innovator incumbent’s business.
- Disruptive technology
This is designed to create a new technological industry standard.
Many businesses and their managers have been focused on sustaining technological innovations. But there are companies right now bringing radical ideas into the market and competing with the big players. These radical ideas disrupt the existing market by trumping everyone with their offers.
Real-world Examples of Disruptive Technology
Following are examples of disruptive technology that changed the lives of human beings.
Artificial Intelligence(AI)
Currently, AI is being used by every organization and in industries as possible. They are used in spam detection in emails, video games, chat assistants, and virtual web assistants like Siri, etc.
Some of these AI-based tools like Apple Siri can make our lives easier by answering questions about climate, food, etc.
Blockchain
The concept of Blockchain was introduced through the rise and adoption of Bitcoin, which disrupted the banking sector where ledgers were highly centralized. Blockchain has introduced the concept of a distributed ledger through distributed components that allow us not to have third parties for financial transactions.
Blockchain provides various features such as security and transparency, which increases the security of the financial system while reducing the large bank fees. Since the distribution is distributed, there is not any single entity that controls the transaction.
Internet of Things (IoT)
IoT is the network of various devices that are connected through the internet. It helps to connect various devices and develop relationships between them, and collects data between them.
The use of IoT has increased currently nowadays, converting it into an efficient and reliable solution.
Following are some examples where IOT-based technology is being used.
- Smart City
- Vehicles connected through IoT devices
- Smart home
Smartphones
When smartphones were introduced, they changed the way people communicate, access information, and interact with technology.
E-commerce Platforms
Companies like Amazon, eBay, and Alibaba disrupted retail industries by offering online platforms for buying and selling goods and changed customer shopping habits in general.
Conclusion
In this blog post, we read about disruptive technology and why it’s important in today’s world.
