Is disruptive innovation in emerging economies different? Evidence from China

Abstract Most studies on disruptive innovations have focused on developed economies and little work examines this type of innovation in and from emerging economies. Moreover, previous studies on disruptive innovations have not investigated the processes behind. This study begins to fill these research gaps. Analysing disruptive innovations in and from China, we identify three important differences from the kinds of disruption observed in developed economies. First, rather than being based on launching products with inferior performance, disruptive innovations in China focus on offering different value propositions. Second, the rate at which Chinese disruptive innovations are improved and extended is typically faster than in developed markets. Third, Chinese disruptive innovations are often launched directly into a mass market rather than a niche. Besides identifying these differences, we also discuss how Chinese firms generate disruptive innovations. The findings expand the understanding of disruptive innovation and hence enrich the existing literature on this important phenomenon.