Disruptive technology shapes the world, defining political, military,
financial, and commercial opportunities and threats. Whether
originating in academic research, in National Labs, or in privately held
or public companies, these technologies can emerge with explosive
impact, creating and destroying value. Yet there are few tools to track
these innovations—at a global scale and at a pace that keeps up with
the rate of change.
What if corporate strategists could literally draw a map to find growth
opportunities? A technique called semantic clustering analysis makes
this possible. When applied to technology entities worldwide, this
analysis can reveal not only which innovation areas are thick with
competition, but also where in the market there are opportunities, or
“white spaces,” ripe for innovation. The result is a data-driven visual
tool that can be used to drive corporate innovation strategy.