Looking at all you AI-powered product makers 👀 Are you turning up the pressure to be first? Does it matter? How so?
HBR previously published "The Half-Truth of First Mover Advantage" in 2005. Take a read of the main takeaways below and let me know if you think it still rings true or if you have other thoughts.
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Being first, you can leverage an advantage by:
➡️ Creating technological edge over your competitors
➡️ Preempting later arrivals’ access to scarce assets
➡️ Building an early base of customers who would encounter high switching costs.
However, your efforts will be fruitful (or fruitless) based on two factors that are out of your control:
➡️ Pace of technological evolution (🤖)
➡️ Pace of market evolution (🛍)
As such, here’s how to tell when it’s likely to occur—and when it’s not.
Slow 🤖 & slow 🛍: Short-lived advantage is unlikely, but durability is very likely.
Slow 🤖 & fast 🛍: Short-lived advantage is very likely, and durability is likely.
Fast 🤖 & slow 🛍: Short-lived advantage is very unlikely, and durability is unlikely.
Fast 🤖 & fast 🛍: Short-lived advantage is likely, but durability is unlikely.