TECHNOLOGY EMERGENCE THROUGH ENTREPRENEURSHIP ACROSS MULTIPLE INDUSTRIES

Radical process discontinuities provide opportunities for the founding of new firms across multiple industries; however; little is known about such emergence activity. This article examines nascent technology emergence by studying patterns of related entrepreneurial activity across multiple industries based on a radical process discontinuity. Using historical and statistical methods to examine all nanotechnology firms founded before 2005, I :find that during technology emergence, entrepreneurship occurs first in upstream industries. These upstream entrepreneurs provide the technological foundations that enable the :founding of firms in other industries developing the technology. The results show the role of industry interaction in the development of both upstream and downstream industries. Implications :for entrepreneurs and technology emergence are discussed. Copyright (C) 2010 Strategic Management Society.