Role of Feasibility Assessment in Technology Scouting

Today, the pace at which new technologies emerge is astounding. Startups globally are making breakthroughs in technologies ranging from satellite internet and quantum computing to AI-driven drug discovery. For companies seeking new technologies in the open innovation ecosystem, there is too much to pick from. However, most new technologies fade away in a few years or their impact is overstated. Technology feasibility assessment enables companies to evaluate the merits of different technologies.

In recent years, more companies are leveraging data-driven technology scouting, a process for identifying emerging technologies that are relevant to their innovation goals and incorporating them through acquisitions or partnerships. While data-driven scouting methods gather large numbers of technologies, they need to be assessed for quality as well. This is why technology feasibility assessment is critical to the success of any technology scouting initiative.

How Technology Feasibility Assessment drives Innovation

With open innovation, companies are exposed to different technology trends being advanced by startups globally. The challenge lies in separating the wheat from the chaff. Here are four ways technology feasibility assessment improves the outcome of your technology scouting process:

Assesses Technology Fit

For companies seeking external innovation, it is often not sufficient that a new technology works great. They need to assess whether the said technology is easy to implement in their existing systems. Technology feasibility assessment allows companies to quantify the fit between promising technologies and their infrastructure and innovation goals.

Technology fit has other aspects to it as well. For instance, how much will it improve the business processes for the company or how great the competitive advantage it will be. A cost-benefit analysis enables companies to bet on new technologies that will have the most impact on their bottom lines.

Compares Technology with Alternatives

If you’re a mobility company looking for high-density battery solutions, it is possible that startups exploring different battery chemistries are on your radar. However, when all of these are early-stage technologies, it may be difficult to pick one. Further, many of them may be more hype than substance. While exploring all alternatives may be tempting, it can significantly research budgets.

This is where data-driven trend intelligence comes in. It identifies technologies that will have the most impact on your competitiveness in the long run. For your open innovation strategy, this enables you to identify the most relevant startups developing the right technologies for your needs, thereby improving the outcomes of corporate-startup partnerships.

Explores Different Use Cases

Technologies are often repurposed for use cases different than they were developed for. Sometimes, this means that the business outcomes a technology advances are different from what you expected. At other times, new use cases open up opportunities to expand to new markets. While one cannot predict how exactly a new technology will progress, trend scouting provides insights into multiple possible outcomes.

This prepares you to rapidly repurpose technologies for other use cases if needed. This doesn’t have to be limited to new technologies. For instance, frugal solutions often repurpose old technologies for low-cost use cases. Assessing all feasible use cases of technology allows a company to lower risk and maximize the return on investment.

Informs Build-Buy-Partner Strategy

When your company is ready to bet on new technology, does it make more sense to develop it in-house or seek external innovation? Resolving this conundrum is one of the most effective ways companies use technology feasibility assessment. If you lack the necessary infrastructure or expertise, it is a no-brainer to work with startups or vendors advancing the technology.

If you have all the necessary components and the expertise, advancing the technology via internal innovation could lead to a massive competitive advantage. But it carries a huge risk and upfront investment. Technology feasibility assessment involves cost-benefit analysis to predict whether it is better to build, buy, or partner in such a situation.

Identify Emerging Technology Trends

Startups and scaleups globally are advancing new technologies across industries. The StartUs Insights Discovery Platform takes a systemic data-driven approach to find technology trends that are most likely to impact your industry and are most relevant to your needs. Depending on your innovation goals and requirements, we at StartUs Insights customize the deliverables of our innovation intelligence services. These deliverables include:

• Trend Analysis Map: Based on data-driven research, we classify emergent technology trends and group them into categories so you discover them at one glance.
• Trend Analysis Report: This report provides quantitative insights into top relevant trends as well as exemplary startups.
• Exemplary Startups Database: Gives you a list of relevant, innovative startups that are advancing emerging technologies in your industry.

Technology scouting enables you to identify startup-driven technology innovations that align with your business needs.

To explore how you can assess emerging trends by monitoring the technology landscape, get in touch today!