Top Innovations List from Wharton

1. Internet, broadband, WWW (browser and html)

2. PC/laptop computers

3. Mobile phones

4. E-mail

5. DNA testing and sequencing/Human genome mapping

6. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)

7. Microprocessors

8. Fiber optics

9. Office software (spreadsheets, word processors)

10. Non-invasive laser/robotic surgery (laparoscopy)

11. Open source software and services (e.g., Linux, Wikipedia)

12. Light emitting diodes

13. Liquid crystal display (LCD)

14. GPS systems

15. Online shopping/ecommerce/auctions (e.g., eBay)

16. Media file compression (jpeg, mpeg, mp3)

17. Microfinance

18. Photovoltaic Solar Energy

19. Large scale wind turbines

20. Social networking via the Internet

21. Graphic user interface (GUI)

22. Digital photography/videography

23. RFID and applications (e.g., EZ Pass)

24. Genetically modified plants

25. Bio fuels

26. Bar codes and scanners

27. ATMs

28. Stents

29. SRAM flash memory

30. Anti retroviral treatment for AIDS

  

Before the winners could be selected from the vast number of entries, the Wharton judges first had to define what innovation means in an age dominated by digital technology, medical advancements and mobile communications. The judges included Ian MacMillan, director of the Sol C. Snider Entrepreneurial Research Center; Thomas Colligan, vice dean, Wharton Executive Education; Kevin Werbach, professor of legal studies and business ethics; Karl Ulrich, chair, operations and information management department; Franklin Allen, co-director of the Wharton Financial Institutions Center; George Day, co-director of the Mack Center for Technological Innovation; Lori Rosenkopf, professor of management; and Mukul Pandya, editor-in-chief of Knowledge@Wharton.