A fascinating question around Christensen’s theory of disruption: “OK, smart guy, why haven’t Apple iPhone/iPad been disrupted by Android?” I count five possible answers, there may be more.
- The theory of disruption is hucksterish management consultant fraud. (This one I do not agree with.)
- Right now Apple *is* the disruptor–iPhones/iPads vs Windows PCs. Many are surprised by the rapid rise of direct substitution, including me.
- Apple *is* getting disrupted right now: Android phones are outselling iPhones somewhere between 5:1 and 10:1 worldwide right now.
- Apple isn’t getting disrupted *yet*, but will be soon. This is what many in Silicon Valley believe, but Apple does not.
- The most interesting one: The current theory of disruption is incomplete and does not have a broad enough concept of end-user quality.
In this line of argument, disruption theory was born in the Microsoft/Intel era, when everyone expected computers to have, um, certain issues. Apple brilliantly redefined the conception of what was possible from an end-user quality and integration standpoint, against prevailing assumptions. We have attempted to generalize *this* concept into “full stack” thinking, which many of today’s best startups are also pursuing. It’s possible disruption theory needs to be evolved to accommodate these newer patterns and knowledge. But it’s also possible all such “full stack” patterns are just integrated approaches that themselves will be disrupted in the future.
Time will tell. In Silicon Valley, these topics are central and being debated both in actions and words by ultra-smart people every day.
References: Full Stack Startups, Disruptive Innovation
https://twitter.com/snakeynag/status/479074693190647808 https://twitter.com/letsgoduke/status/479075060548763648Source Tweets: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14
@pmarca Says 