What is Naive Innovation?

John Spacey, updated on July 26, 2023

Naive innovation is the pursuit of innovation for innovation's sake. Whereas most valuable innovation starts by solving a pressing problem, naive innovation starts with the goal of leveraging a trendy new technology.

New technologies such as artificial intelligence receive a great deal of attention. This drives a sense of innovation anxiety whereby executives at a firm may begin to worry they are getting behind. In an attempt to catch up, they fund programs to adopt innovative new technologies.

When technology or trends are the core motivation for innovation, business goals for such investments are often dreamily optimistic, invented and arbitrary with limited potential to revolutionize customer experience or operational efficiency.

Naive innovation may result in wasted investments, operational disruptions or declining customer relationships as meaningless features are pushed to customers.

Overview: Naive Innovation
Type	Innovation
Definition (1)	The pursuit of trendy new techniques or technologies in the name of innovation.
Related Concepts	Sanity Check Category Killer Innovation Innovation Risk