Good Disruption
”Good Disruption” is a lively discussion between UVA Darden School of Business Professors Mike Lenox and Yael Grushka-Cockayne on cutting edge technologies and practices that are challenging the status quo. They then make their personal call on whether this is a good disruption, bad disruption, or actually no disruption.
Episodes
Our fourth season kicks off with a mini course on disruptive innovation. What is it and what are the markers of a major technological shift? Mike and Yael give a brief Disruption 101 and explore whether disruptions are inherently good or bad, considering both the immediate negative effects and the long-term positive outcomes. They also discuss the role of government, venture capital, and other stakeholders in fostering innovation.
As we end our third season, Yael and Mike reflect on the disruptive technologies explored over the last year. It was an interesting mix of good, bad, and no disruption calls. Do they feel the same now about disruptive potential that they did when each episode first aired? What’s coming in 2026? Don’t miss this recap and send the Good Disruption team your ideas at duffr@darden.virginia.edu.
Large language models (LLMs) offer powerful opportunities for automation, creativity, and knowledge access. With 800 million people using ChatGPT alone, LLMs are drastically changing the way we interact and operate as a society. No question, this is one of the biggest disruptions of our lifetime; but is it a good one?
We’re LIVE from DC Tech Connect, Batten Institute’s flagship tech eve...
Imagine ordering food from Door Dash and it’s delivered to your doorstep within minutes, not by a driver, but a drone. For residents in Dallas-Fort Worth suburbs, this became reality this past summer. And customer delivery isn’t the only industry being disrupted by drones. From precision agriculture to precision battlefield strikes, the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) is changing the game.
Serena Williams recently made headlines for her promotion of GLP-1 medications. The tennis super star is one of a growing list of celebrities turning to GLP-1s, drugs originally developed to treat patients with Type II diabetes and obesity, to help with weight loss.
Off-label use of these medications is rapidly expanding, disrupting a fitness industry built on helping people lose weight...
AI requires data, lots of it. Tech companies are rapidly building new data centers to house it, which will require massive amounts of electricity. How do we power them and stay on track with our emission reduction goals?
An unlikely candidate is emerging – nuclear energy. But it’s not the reactor of the 60s that is being built. Small modular nuclear reactors are dispatchable, site-flex...
If you ask Marvel Comics fans about quantum physics, they might reference time travel, multiverse, quantum realm, and Dr. Strange. Ideas of science fiction. Yet, for decades we have used quantum physics to power MRI machines, solar panels, and lasers. More recently, big tech companies have entered a race to quantum supremacy, where quantum computers surpass silicon-based super computers in speed and complex ...
Imagine testing a new medical device without putting someone on an operating table. Or experimenting with new autonomous capabilities without placing a car on the road.
Computer simulations have been used for decades to predict outcomes but now, digital twins create virtual environments that not only mirror their real-world counterparts but respond to real-time data to yield more con...
From Wall-E and the Iron Giant to I Robot and Terminator, Hollywood has portrayed robots as friendly and misunderstood but also a technology to be feared if left in the wrong hands. Society has been fascinated with the idea of robots, ever since the term was introduced in the 1920s science fiction play “Rossum’s Universal Robots”. Today, humanoid robots are being designed not only to carry out simple tasks ...
In their end-of-year wrap-up, UVA Darden School of Business professors Yael Grushka-Cockayne and Mike Lenox discuss the impact of AI, and the rise of digital keys and AI in household use. They also discuss the future of cryptocurrency, the rapid adoption of autonomous vehicles, the increasing popularity of electric vehicles, and revisit the potential of digital fashion and vertical farming. The Good Disruption Podcast wishes all of...
From “hanging chads” to claims of “rigged” Dominion voting machines, the technological improvements to voting technology aimed at improving efficiency and securing trust in the electoral process have been marred in controversy.
Yet, more countries around the world are shifting to electronic voting. In the U.S., most votes will be counted using a touch screen or optical scanner on-site...
For more than a century, utility-scale power plants have delivered electricity to millions of customers through a vast grid of connected substations, transmission lines, and distribution lines. This one-way generator-to-customer business model is shifting due to a rapid increase in DERs like rooftop solar and energy storage systems, capable of localized generation and transacting on the grid.
Social media is one of the biggest and most controversial disruptions in the last decade, arguably the last several decades. More than 5 billion people, or 62% percent of the world's population, have joined Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and other platforms. These platforms are providing marketers greater visibility into consumer needs and creating more opportunities to build brand loyalty. And, they give cons...
The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines companion as “one that accompanies another” and “one that keeps company with another”. From physical training and therapy to friendships and personal assistance, people are increasingly looking to AI companions for support.
Still, there is something missing. These AI companions are designed to support the individual but what is the impact on broad...
Let’s talk lettuce. Every year Americans consume 30 pounds of lettuce per capita, a fivefold increase from the previous century, with more than 90% of it grown in California and Arizona. What happens when that supply chain is threatened?
We saw a glimpse of the disruption in 2021, when US production dropped 11% and prices rose 17% because of pests, severe weather, and increased deman...
Gen Xers will remember Knight Rider, a television show in the 1980s about a crime fighter who battles bad guys with the help of a technologically advanced Pontiac Firebird Trans Am that drives itself and talks, all powered by artificial intelligence. At that time, the idea of a self-driving car was futuristic; but now 40 years later, some elements of autonomy are available in passenger vehicles as a standard...
Garments that respond to body movements, intricate laced dresses using plastics and resins, highly sculpted pieces with complex geometric shapes. The use of 3D printing in the fashion industry is allowing designers to think outside the box, in both materials and creativity. Major fashion houses Adidas, Hugo Boss, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Reebok, Tommy Hilfiger, and others are using 3D printing to bring new ideas ...
From the explosion of Generative AI to the evolution of the hybrid workplace, disruption has become the “norm” for business. How will business and society be shaped by disruption in 2024?
Yael and Mike are joined by Devin Bigoness, Executive Director & Chief Client Officer for Darden Executive Education & Lifelong Learning, to explore just a few of the emerging technologies ...
Happy Anniversary to Good Disruption! It's been an interesting year of good, bad, and no disruptions. From generative AI, NFTs, and cryptocurrency to renewable energy and clean meat, Yael and Mike review their predictions and discuss whether they still hold up.
The proliferation of AI has given rise to fear of job replacement across many industries, including entertainment. Technologies like Chat GPT and AI-facilitated computer-generated imagery (CGI) threaten the livelihoods of tens of thousands of writers and actors. In April 2023, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Months later, the S...
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