Innovation can happen anywhere. Industry is increasingly realizing that technology scouting must be global in order to be effective.

High tech innovation: New hotspots on the map

Traditionally, high tech innovation was concentrated in a few select locations around world. Prominent innovation centers attract ambitious people and organizations, leading to a concentration of manpower and resources. For example, Silicon Valley, Boston, and Israel are considered hot spots for all kinds of high-tech innovation.

However, for corporations in deep tech industries, Silicon Valley or Boston are no longer the last stop on the search for high tech patents and startups. Open innovation leaders need to seek cutting edge tech wherever it can be found. Today, that means going to new cities and countries where they have no existing relationships. 

How global is innovation?

A recent report from the research organization Startup Genome profiles the leading innovation ecosystems in today’s changing innovation landscape.

The report touches on many of the deep tech industries most important to seedsprint users: artificial intelligence, robotics and advanced manufacturing, agtech and food science, cleantech, and life sciences.

For the artificial intelligence/big data sector, there are 28 cities where artificial intelligence innovation is concentrated. Of these, 13 are in the United States or Canada, 7 are in Europe, and 8 are in Asia.

Life sciences innovation can be found in diverse places as well, with many Canadian and US cities in play (including Tampa Bay, Florida and Phoenix), as well as numerous cities in Europe (Barcelona, Greater Helsinki) and Asia (Taipei, Hong Kong).

Blockchain is booming in North America, Europe, and Asia – with the most innovation happening in Europe, in smaller cities like Gibraltar and Zug.

30 cities in a year?

Every corporation that is serious about open innovation needs to have a foothold in North America Europe, and Asia.

Yet Startup Genome’s report shows that in addition to spanning multiple continents, corporations need to make sure they have access to innovation coming out of smaller cities.

Today, corporations need to know about technologies that are being developed in many different cities around the world – at least ten cities for some industries, and upwards of 30 for others.

This doesn’t mean visiting 30 cities in a year, however. A skilled tech scout knows where to find global communities that draw the best and brightest from cities all over the world. These include leading conferences, industry groups, accelerators and incubators, and online communities.

For our part, seedsprint is focused on bringing this global ecosystem online, enabling discovery and initial due diligence for tech scouts. We bring the leading deep tech startups and technologies from the world’s research hot spots onto one searchable platform, so that tech scouts can contact the world’s best and brightest from anywhere, at any time. (That’s a must-have in this global technology landscape.)

(Interested in learning more about innovation hotspots? Read about the trend of innovation districts.)

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