Technological Innovation and the expansion of Entrepreneurship Ecosystems

Abstract

To date much of the entrepreneurial ecosystems literature treated ecosystems as confined geographic locations with definitive boards. However, in the past decades, technological innovation and developments in social relationships (e.g., online platforms, social media, and the sharing economy) have extended and blurred the boundaries of entrepreneurial ecosystems. Thus, current research on entrepreneurial ecosystems often underestimates the reach and impacts of a given ecosystem. To remedy this, we advocate the use of a more holistic approach in modern entrepreneurial ecosystems frameworks which includes social relationships and technology, thus extending beyond geographical barriers. We discuss how technology has dissolved locational barriers and connected elements of ecosystems, how social relationships maximize advantages through greater resource access, and how the entrepreneurship ecosystem now exists on a plane that is both physical and cyber.