HBR IdeaCast

The Innovation System Behind Moderna’s Covid-19 Vaccine

Sep 23, 2021

Noubar Afeyan, cofounder of Moderna Therapeutics and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, shares insights into the innovative processes that led to the Covid-19 vaccine. He discusses the concept of 'emergent discovery,' emphasizing the importance of working back from future ideals and fostering unconventional ideas. Afeyan highlights how cultivating a supportive culture can transform daring thoughts into groundbreaking innovations. He also explores the integration of mRNA technology and AI, showcasing their potential to reshape various industries.

21:18

Creator website

Episode guests

Noubar Afeyan

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Intro

2min

Beyond Incremental Innovations

10min

Cultivating a Culture of Innovation and Emergence

5min

Innovating Beyond Boundaries: mRNA and AI

7min

Innovative Strategies Behind Vaccine Development

2min

Noubar Afeyan, cofounder and chair of Moderna Therapeutics and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, says that the breakthrough innovation behind the company’s Covid-19 vaccine came not as a stroke of luck, but from a repeatable process. He outlines a system called “emergent discovery” that involves working back from future ideals, pioneering in novel spaces, encouraging unreasonable ideas, and persistently questioning hypotheses. And he says this process applies to other industries besides life sciences. Afeyan is the coauthor, with HBS professor Gary Pisano, of the HBR article "What Evolution Can Teach Us About Innovation."

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