Let’s start by recognising the bold claim:
This year’s Nobel Prize in Economics went to Joel Mokyr, Philippe Aghion, and Peter Howitt – who insist that growth doesn’t happen by accident – it happens when you innovate, when you allow the new to replace the old, when you invite creative destruction.
Now, if you’re the type who rolls your eyes, chuckles at “creative destruction,” and prefers stability, tradition and “business as usual,” this article is for you. Let’s call you the “anti-innovation crew.”
The “stable economy” manifesto
Because why fix what isn’t broken?
– You reject the idea that new technologies should replace the old.
– You ridicule the notion that disruption can be good.
– You scoff at the models that show growth through destruction of the old.
You’d argue:
Let’s keep the old factory humming, keep doing what we always did, keep our monopolies snug, keep the competition at bay.
Innovation? Overrated.
Disruption? Drama.
Growth? Meh.
Meanwhile, over in the Nobel camp
Here’s what the laureates actually discovered:
– Mokyr identified that sustained growth comes when knowledge, institutions and technology align.
– Aghion & Howitt formalised the idea that economic growth comes from new products and methods replacing old ones – creative destruction in action.
– The committee warned: “economic stagnation, not growth, has been the norm for most of human history.”
A forecast for the anti-innovation crew
If you keep saying “no thanks” to innovation, here’s how the story tends to end:
– Your industry becomes the museum of what-used-to-work. Everyone else is on to version 2.0 while you’re polishing the obsolete 1.0.
– Your company becomes a cautionary tale in case-studies: “Here’s what happens when you ignore disruption.”
– You declare yourself the “traditional champion,” but you’re really the resistance center to change, and change leaves you behind.
Congratulations. You’ve enrolled in the grand course of non-growth.
Final verdict: evolve or evaporate
If you want to remain the hero of your old story, by all means ignore the Nobel laureates’ theories.
Pretend growth is optional, disruption is dramatic, and new technology is just a gadget.
But the world doesn’t wait.
The world keeps innovating.
So here’s your choice:
keep your cosy corner of status-quo, resist the theory of creative destruction, and watch the rest of us play out the sequel –
or join the smart ones, embrace the churn, and participate in the next chapter of growth.
Because the only thing more dangerous than disruption… is refusing it.