Applied Philosophy

The concept of innovation has entered a turbulent age. On the one hand, it is uncritically understood as 'technological innovation' and 'commercialized innovation.' On the other hand, ongoing research under the heading responsible research and innovation (RRI) suggests that current global issues require innovation to go beyond its usual intent of generating commercial value. However, little thought goes into what innovation means conceptually. Although there is a focus on enabling outcomes of innovation processes to become more responsible and desirable, the technological and commercial nature of these processes is rarely questioned. For these reasons, this paper poses the following research question: what concept of innovation is implicitly taken up by the RRI discourse and what implications does this concept have for the societal purpose of RRI? As a first step, we analyze the extent to which the concept of innovation in the RRI literature is uncritically presupposed to be technological. Subsequently, we examine the diverse meanings innovation has had over time and argue that while innovation originally had a political connotation it is only recently restricted to the meaning of technological innovation. We go on to show that even though the concept of technological innovation can contribute to the societal purpose of RRI, this requires certain conditions that are difficult to guarantee. Consequentially, we argue that future research should explore alternative understandings of innovation that better enable the overall feasibility of the emerging frameworks of RRI.

Praised as a panacea for resolving all societal issues, and self-evidently presupposed as technological innovation, the concept of innovation has become the emblem of our age. This is especially reflected in the context of the European Union, where it is considered to play a central role in both strengthening the economy and confronting the current environmental crisis. The pressing question is how technological innovation can be steered into the right direction. To this end, recent frameworks of Responsible Innovation (RI) focus on how to enable outcomes of innovation processes to become societally desirable and ethically acceptable. However, questions with regard to the technological nature of these innovation processes are rarely raised. For this reason, this paper raises the following research question: To what extent is RI possible in the current age, where the concept of innovation is predominantly presupposed as technological innovation? On the one hand, we depart from a post-phenomenological perspective to evaluate the possibility of RI in relation to the particular technological innovations discussed in the RI literature. On the other hand, we emphasize the central role innovation plays in the current age, and suggest that the presupposed concept of innovation projects a techno-economic paradigm. In doing so, we ultimately argue that in the attempt to steer innovation, frameworks of RI are in fact steered by the techno-economic paradigm inherent in the presupposed concept of innovation. Finally, we account for what implications this has for the societal purpose of RI.

Praised as a panacea for resolving all societal issues, and self-evidently presupposed as technological innovation, the concept of innovation has become the emblem of our age. This is especially reflected in the context of the European Union, where it is considered to play a central role in both strengthening the economy and confronting the current environmental crisis. The pressing question is how technological innovation can be steered into the right direction. To this end, recent frameworks of Responsible Innovation (RI) focus on how to enable outcomes of innovation processes to become societally desirable and ethically acceptable. However, questions with regard to the technological nature of these innovation processes are rarely raised. For this reason, this paper raises the following research question:To what extent is RI possible in the current age, where the concept of innovation is predominantly presupposed as technological innovation?On the one hand, we depart from a post-p...

The concept of innovation has entered a turbulent age. On the one hand, it is uncritically understood as ‘technological innovation’ and ‘commercialized innovation.’ On the other hand, ongoing research under the heading responsible research and innovation (RRI) suggests that current global issues require innovation to go beyond its usual intent of generating commercial value. However, little thought goes into what innovation means conceptually. Although there is a focus on enablingoutcomesof innovation processes to become more responsible and desirable, the technological and commercial nature of these processes is rarely questioned. For these reasons, this paper poses the following research question:what concept of innovation is implicitly taken up by the RRI discourse and what implications does this concept have for the societal purpose of RRI?As a first step, we analyze the extent to which the concept of innovation in the RRI literature is uncritically presupposed to be technologic...

Chapter 1 Introduction I. The Nature of Innovation in the Emerging Context of Responsible Innovation What other place to seek inspiration in than the London Underground during rush hour? It was there, on a wintery day anno 2017, that I spotted a fellow commuter reading a book titled Innovation. Intrigued as I was, I pushed my way through the slightly overcrowded tube and asked the avid reader how the book defined innovation. He was quick to turn to the back cover and started reading out loud: "True innovation is about delivering value to customers" (Carlson and Wilmot 2006). I then realized two things. First, the concept of innovation defines our age. It fuels the global economy, promises a sustainable future, and stands at the heart of our interconnected society. Not only was the underground surrounded with all kinds of innovations, but we have even reached a point in history where people are reading about innovation and-as the commuter would later confess-dream of becoming innovators themselves, for public icons like Steve Jobs and Elon Musk are praised in the same way artists and scientists were in previous times. Second, the concept of innovation is widely presupposed in terms of the commercial value it generates. In this view, innovation is only considered valuable insofar customers are willing to pay for it. As claimed in the tradition of economic analysis, innovation is characterized by its competitive dynamics and is primarily directed at developing marketable products and services (Stoneman 1995). At the same time, our geopolitical landscape faces an unprecedented crisis, overwhelmed with global issues such as climate change, overpopulation, water shortage, a loss of biodiversity, food security, and the more recent COVID-19 pandemic. The reality of these issues increasingly urge innovation to generate societal value beyond mainstream economic incentive. This is particularly the case in the context of the European Union (EU), which strives to represent high ethical standards on the world stage and thus prioritizes normative objectives on its political agenda. To this end, the EU policy discourse has paved the way for Responsible Innovation (RI). The core idea here is to steer innovation processes towards societally desirable outcomes, specifically in response to the so-called grand challenges of our time (European Commission 2015). A frequently cited and particularly influential definition of RI calls for "a transparent, interactive process by which societal actors and innovators become mutually responsive to each other with a view on the (ethical) acceptability, sustainability and societally Notes 1.

The concept of innovation has entered a turbulent age. On the one hand, it is uncritically understood as 'technological innovation' and 'commercialized innovation.' On the other hand, ongoing research under the heading responsible research and innovation (RRI) suggests that current global issues require innovation to go beyond its usual intent of generating commercial value. However, little thought goes into what innovation means conceptually. Although there is a focus on enabling outcomes of innovation processes to become more responsible and desirable, the technological and commercial nature of these processes is rarely questioned. For these reasons, this paper poses the following research question: what concept of innovation is implicitly taken up by the RRI discourse and what implications does this concept have for the societal purpose of RRI? As a first step, we analyze the extent to which the concept of innovation in the RRI literature is uncritically presupposed to be technological. Subsequently, we examine the diverse meanings innovation has had over time and argue that while innovation originally had a political connotation it is only recently restricted to the meaning of technological innovation. We go on to show that even though the concept of technological innovation can contribute to the societal purpose of RRI, this requires certain conditions that are difficult to guarantee. Consequentially, we argue that future research should explore alternative understandings of innovation that better enable the overall feasibility of the emerging frameworks of RRI.

Chapter 1 Introduction I. The Nature of Innovation in the Emerging Context of Responsible Innovation What other place to seek inspiration in than the London Underground during rush hour? It was there, on a wintery day anno 2017, that I spotted a fellow commuter reading a book titled Innovation. Intrigued as I was, I pushed my way through the slightly overcrowded tube and asked the avid reader how the book defined innovation. He was quick to turn to the back cover and started reading out loud: "True innovation is about delivering value to customers" (Carlson and Wilmot 2006). I then realized two things. First, the concept of innovation defines our age. It fuels the global economy, promises a sustainable future, and stands at the heart of our interconnected society. Not only was the underground surrounded with all kinds of innovations, but we have even reached a point in history where people are reading about innovation and-as the commuter would later confess-dream of becoming innovators themselves, for public icons like Steve Jobs and Elon Musk are praised in the same way artists and scientists were in previous times. Second, the concept of innovation is widely presupposed in terms of the commercial value it generates. In this view, innovation is only considered valuable insofar customers are willing to pay for it. As claimed in the tradition of economic analysis, innovation is characterized by its competitive dynamics and is primarily directed at developing marketable products and services (Stoneman 1995). At the same time, our geopolitical landscape faces an unprecedented crisis, overwhelmed with global issues such as climate change, overpopulation, water shortage, a loss of biodiversity, food security, and the more recent COVID-19 pandemic. The reality of these issues increasingly urge innovation to generate societal value beyond mainstream economic incentive. This is particularly the case in the context of the European Union (EU), which strives to represent high ethical standards on the world stage and thus prioritizes normative objectives on its political agenda. To this end, the EU policy discourse has paved the way for Responsible Innovation (RI). The core idea here is to steer innovation processes towards societally desirable outcomes, specifically in response to the so-called grand challenges of our time (European Commission 2015). A frequently cited and particularly influential definition of RI calls for "a transparent, interactive process by which societal actors and innovators become mutually responsive to each other with a view on the (ethical) acceptability, sustainability and societally Notes 1.