Iconic Innovation: Why Peace Isn't Humanity's Greatest Achievement
Are our expectations really so low that not fighting counts as innovation?
By Tristan Kromer · Quick Answer: Iconic innovation means genuinely creating new value — not simply avoiding destruction. As entrepreneurs, we should reject the low bar of celebrating peace as humanity’s greatest innovation; that’s a baseline expectation, not an achievement. More importantly, we must distinguish between capturing value (cybersquatting, content farms, Groupon clones) and actually creating it. We have vast challenges ahead and cannot afford to pat ourselves on the back for merely not making things worse.
- Iconic Innovation Yesterday a tweet from Venture Hacks caught my eye:
Man’s greatest innovations are the peaceful periods of history that make all other innovations possible.
It stood out because I think it’s profoundly wrong and I rarely disagree with anything either Nivi or Naval say, but the sentiment here seems outrageous to me. It’s akin to congratulating a wife beating alcoholic on managing to occasional not break her arm. It’s akin to giving some sort of prize to US presidents for having not yet started any wars. (Ummm…oh wait…I guess we do that already.) Entrepreneurs in particular risk losing our definition as value creators by an encroaching mass of mediocrity which thinks that cybersquatting and mechanical turk generated content farms are a form of entrepreneurship. Let’s just agree that capturing value does not equal creating value. So please think before creating your SMB destroying Groupon clone. Tone down that sociopathic side of you that you think is critical to your success. It’s not. As a planet, as a nation, as families, as humans, we have vast and intimidating challenges in front of us. We simply cannot pat ourselves on the back on not shooting each other. We can do so much more. P.S.: Yes, I realize that the VH team undoubtedly did not intend to imply what I read out of the comment, but that’s the great thing about words. P.P.S: I also realize that warfare is also responsible for a tremendous amount of iconic innovation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is iconic innovation and why does it matter?
Iconic innovation refers to breakthroughs that genuinely create new value for humanity — not merely the absence of conflict or destruction. As product managers and entrepreneurs, we should hold ourselves to a higher standard than “not making things worse.” True iconic innovation means tackling vast, intimidating challenges and creating something meaningfully new.
Does capturing value count as creating value in entrepreneurship?
No — capturing value and creating value are fundamentally different things. Activities like cybersquatting, content farms, or cloning existing businesses (like Groupon clones that destroy small businesses) capture existing value without creating anything new. As entrepreneurs, we risk losing our identity as value creators if we conflate the two.
Why shouldn’t we celebrate peace as humanity’s greatest innovation?
The article argues that celebrating the mere absence of conflict sets an unacceptably low bar for human achievement. It’s like congratulating someone for not causing harm rather than for doing something great. We have vast challenges ahead, and simply not fighting each other isn’t an accomplishment — it should be the baseline expectation, not the pinnacle of innovation.
How does a sociopathic mindset hurt entrepreneurs?
Many entrepreneurs believe a ruthless, sociopathic edge is critical to success, but the article argues it’s not. Building SMB-destroying clones or extracting value at others’ expense isn’t real entrepreneurship. We should resist the “encroaching mass of mediocrity” and instead focus on genuine value creation that addresses real human challenges.
Can warfare actually drive iconic innovation?
Yes, paradoxically. The article acknowledges that warfare has historically been responsible for a tremendous amount of iconic innovation. However, this doesn’t mean we should celebrate periods of peace as our greatest achievement — it means we need to find ways to channel that same innovative energy toward constructive rather than destructive ends.
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