There are many things that influence the product innovation process: the right mindset; the right culture; the right people; the right tools, solutions, and platforms. As important as all those components may be, what truly drives innovation is vision. Innovators envision something new and then strive to bring it into the world.
For a vision to be realized, you need to know what’s possible. You need to know what tools are available to realize your vision. And you need to know what tools you may need to invent in order to do so.
In this brief, we hope to provide inspiration as well as a sense of the possible by looking at innovations in robotics, the Internet of Things (IoT), voice technologies, and augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR). There are several common threads linking these innovations: the ever-increasing intelligence and autonomy of manufactured objects, the power inherent in seamlessly connecting diverse systems, and the evolution of human interaction with technology.
Each of these innovations expands the boundaries of what’s possible in industries ranging from consumer electronics to healthcare. As you think about their potential in your industry, what novel combinations and applications of technology can you envision? And how will this vision transform the products you bring to life?