Technological innovation: what it is, importance for companies

Technology / Date: 03-25-2025

Technological innovation is the concept that deals with the innovation of technology, that is, the creation of new instruments, equipment and techniques to carry out certain activities.
Football and technology in sport can illustrate this. Notice how the balls, boots and materials used in uniforms have radically changed, for example.
Not to mention more strategic sectors , such as industry, where the application of technology has made certain equipment operable almost like video games.
In healthcare, it is thanks to technological innovation that preparation for surgeries can be done with augmented reality , reducing the risk of human error and anticipating unforeseen events .
In addition to these, many other examples could be cited to help understand what innovation is and its meaning.

How important are technological innovations for companies?

Technology and innovation are terms that are almost identical in their meanings .
The difference is that a technology can be dated, while innovation is the process of making something better and different from what has been done.
Therefore, technological innovations play a central role for companies in all segments, as this is the only way they can remain competitive.
A company that fails to innovate ends up stagnating and thus placing itself in a vulnerable position, ready to be overtaken by the competition.
Therefore, innovating in its technologies, practices and operations is a decisive factor for every company and for a business to remain relevant over time.

Discover the main types of technological innovation

Technological innovation leads us to witness that, when it comes to change, there are different ways to move forward .
Just as no two companies are the same, each one ends up finding its own way to innovate.
Technological advancement is not a linear process , although there is a continuity.
Between one point and another on the path that leads a technology to become innovative, there are advances and setbacks, which are normal in any growth process.

Therefore, there are different approaches when it comes to innovation, some of which we will look at in more detail below.

Incremental innovation

Do you remember the Kyocera Visual Phone VP-210?
If you have no idea what this device is, that's okay, as it is considered the first mobile phone in history equipped with a digital camera .
Launched in 1999, it allowed you to take up to 20 photos, with a modest resolution of 0.11 megapixels.
With it, it was also possible to make video calls, a tremendous revolution for the time.
This is a good example of incremental innovation, whose main characteristic is the addition of a new function to a product that already exists .
In this case, the most important functionality of the device is being a telephone.
Incrementally, this phone also became a camera , without compromising its original functions.

Process innovation

Now let's think about what the manufacturer Kyocera had to do to insert a camera into a mobile phone.
There have certainly been a number of changes in their manufacturing processes to accommodate the new components that have become part of the devices.
An effort was needed to innovate the processes, as the old ones would no longer be able to handle the production of an item with new functions.
Process innovation , therefore, is any new way of producing something , focusing on improving a procedure.
Remembering that a process is understood as all input and output, as well as what happens between one and the other.

Product innovation

Any product is subject to undergoing some type of innovation, no matter how simple it may be.
A cup, for example, can be made with non-slip material to improve grip and prevent it from slipping when handled.
Conceptually, product innovation consists of any improvement implemented in something that is already available for sale on the market.
In this way, it can only be incremental, which as we have seen is a type of innovation that does not change the nature of the product and its original functions.
It can also, in certain cases, be a radical change, a type of deeper innovation, which we will learn more about below.

Radical innovation

Depending on how drastic it is, innovation in technology can completely reconfigure a product or service .
Since we are talking about cell phone cameras, the digitalization of photography has made traditional cameras that use film to record their images obsolete.
Although there is a lot of talk about a vintage or retro culture, which values equipment with dated technologies, the fact is that the digital camera was a radical innovation .
It led to not only a change in the product, but also to major changes in the market.
The practice of taking photographs became even more popular, as more people were able to have a camera , not only to take photographs but also to make videos.
Therefore, radical innovation, although it has something incremental, is one in which the change is so great that it forever changes not only the product, but the market as a whole.

What is the role of artificial intelligence in technological innovation?

An innovative technology can be a real game changer , depending on how impactful it is.
Artificial intelligence is an example of this, although, conceptually, it is not that new.
As early as the 1950s , scientist John McCarthy spoke of machines that could behave intelligently and simulate human reasoning.
Also at that time, Alan Turing, considered the father of Artificial Intelligence, said that machines could not think, but behave as if they were people .
These concepts led to a new way of dealing with technological innovation, as it placed machines no longer as just objects, but as agents of this innovation.
With the digital transformation, this role has become even greater, becoming more pronounced recently with advances in conversation models and augmented reality.

How can companies invest in technological innovations?

By walking side by side, technology and innovation are the driving forces that take companies to higher levels in the markets in which they operate.
For this change to be possible, they need to invest in a series of aspects of the business.
An innovative technology cannot be created without a favorable business ecosystem and a scenario conducive to the dissemination of this technology.
In other words, there is little point in having half a dozen innovative companies if they are in a market that is not open to innovation.
In such contexts, consumers themselves may be reactive to new products or ways of providing services.
See how technological innovation can be consolidated and which practices can facilitate the creation of new technologies.

Empowering people

As we have seen, technological innovation starts within companies and is directed towards people inside and outside them.
Therefore, it is essential that there is a common effort to make a market receptive to innovation .
The term business ecosystem addresses precisely this, by categorizing different business environments according to their greater or lesser openness to technology .
None of this would be possible without qualified professionals capable of developing innovative projects within companies. The consumer also needs to evolve, although for this, government participation is essential.

Investing in infrastructure

Speaking of telephone networks, they could never evolve and undergo innovation processes without an infrastructure capable of supporting this .
In other words, for a 5G network to exist, a new network of antennas is needed, equipped with retransmitters with the appropriate signal power and technology.
The same applies to the context of companies that, in order to innovate, need to have a minimum infrastructure in their communications, processes and logistics operations.

Becoming data driven

Increasingly digital and supported by Big Data , technological innovation relies heavily on data to continue.
It is impossible to conceive of a business in this context that does not operate and make decisions without structured data.
Business intelligence is born and develops when companies are aligned with the practices of their time .
In this regard, its leaders need to guide their decision-making processes by data, which requires processing with sophisticated analysis tools and appropriate software.