From the iconic Italian novel, The Leopard, comes the insight, “If we want things to stay as they are, things will have to change.”  If innovation is to remain the fuel for the economic engine of the United States then the process of innovation will have to change.  Duane Roth, CEO of CONNECT, supports a new paradigm for innovation which emphasizes a “distributed partnering model” with a focus on advancing products rather than companies.  This parsed approach would concentrate talent, capital and intellectual property in a manner which would potentially have greater efficiency and less risk, and therefore be easier to finance.  The old model of huge, fully integrated companies would be replaced by entities distinctly concentrated in the product functions of discovery, definition, development and delivery.  Coincidentally, San Diego has scores of companies which would be very happy to see this innovative approach to innovation blossom. 

Recently Roth contributed an Insight & Opinion article for the Xconomist Forum.  Click here to read Addressing the Innovation “Valley of Death:” It’s the Products, Stupid!

 You can also check out the paper authored by Roth and Pedro Cuatrecasas of UCSD presented by the Kauffman Foundation. 

 The press release from the Kauffman foundation is here.

is approaching their first anniversary in San Diego.  They have a unique approach in their coverage of local innovative economies.  At this time their focus is limited to three high-tech clusters, Boston, Seattle and San Diego.  We can assume that more cities will be added in time.  In San Diego, Bruce Bigelow heads up the Xconomy news effort.  His frequent coverage of the clean tech sector in San Diego is highly regarded.

Last evening I represented CleanTECH San Diego at a reception in a private residence to honor their Xconomists.  Xconomy has the enlightened strategy of aligning with several key thought leaders in each of their three cities.  The Xconomists are leading technologists, scientists, and business innovators. Click here for the impressive list of San Diego Xconomists who share their views and insights.