Lean innovation

LEAN INNOVATIONPhilip Wheat

Chaotic Moon Labs

Phil@ChaoticMoon.com

@pwheat

Do I want to stay for this presentation?

Bullet Points• “Manhattan project” R&D is a thing of the past.• There’s plenty of “R” around.• There’s not nearly enough “D”• There’s almost no “E”• Business abhors R and doesn’t want to pay for D• If you want to be a business – don’t think you’ll change

this – there are great reasons for it.

Traditional view of ResearchThis is what most people think of when they think R&D.

The most productive Research environment ever

Surprised? Let’s run down the items you have with you that came from this room.

That location todayResearch has been taken over by Universities. Both because of economics and volume of students needing to do research for degrees.

Development is Needed• A large part of the problem with the patent system today is

that it’s easy to patent something and difficult to bring it to market.

• It’s easier to patent an idea than it is to get it presented in a peer reviewed journal.

• Execution is almost always an afterthought in research.

Lean Innovation• Lean innovation is a Marketing Term• “Lean” is a buzzword for doing just what you need.• “Innovation” is a buzzword for doing something new.• “Lean Innovation” is doing just what you need to do

something new.

“You Ain’t Gonna Need It”• YAGNI is a catchphrase in Agile development. • It’s based on the concept of “If you’re building it for an

unspecified future, then you are likely to be wasting your time.”

• This is NOT about ignoring needs you have NOW.• Lean Innovation is about finding a way over, around, or

through the NEXT hurdle in your business.

Board of AwesomenessBuilt in 2 weeks – used off the shelf hardware and software.

Smarter CartWas filmed by Discovery Channel on week 2 of development.

3 off the shelf systems integrated in a completely new way.

Board of ImaginationBased on Board of Awesomeness

Built in less than 5 days

Used off the shelf hardware with custom software

These are just three examples• The raw material is happening faster than we can

assimilate• Raw material is just that – raw material. Unless

something is done with it, the value is minimal.• Those who can transform basic research into products

create HUGE amounts of wealth.• Transforming basic research into products is hard (or so

we’ve been told.)

KEY POINTS

Don’t bite off more than one feature

The industry is full of “game changers” that changed too many games and failed to change any of them.

Focus on one point. Too small for the market? Tivo changed the market with a 15 second skip forward feature.

Tivo also got sued for that feature.

Focus on your core and limit your exposure.

But be relevant• Delivering pet food on time wasn’t enough for a business

model.• Providing the ability to vote on dancing celebrities was. • Knowing what catches the public eye is key in the

consumer startup world.

Startup maturity• First time startups: Sign all these NDA’s• Second time startups: Sign these NDA’s around…• Veteran startups: Here’s what we’re doing – no, tell

everyone. We’re moving faster than you can.

The next markets• (I’m biased – I focus on capabilities)• Perceptive computing – using all these sensors for more

than Orwellian objectives.• Pervasive computing – my data where I want it and just

for me (not everyone.)• Predictive computing – make computing devices more

responsive by being prepared for your choices.

The next markets• (Bob Metcalfe is biased - and he’s created new industries)• Energy – Watts/person is a basic metric of societal

advancement.• Education – the more educated the populace is, the more

efficient and informed society is.• Communications – the better the communications in

society the better the previous two bullet points are achieved.

LEAN INNOVATIONPhilip Wheat

Chaotic Moon Labs

Phil@ChaoticMoon.com

@pwheat