Before we discuss failures in innovations, we need to understand what innovation is. The dictionary definition of innovation states that it is something new or something that's introduced in a different manner; an introduction of new things or methods. Every innovation is temporary. Edison's light bulb was once innovatory, as were cars. Successful innovations invade our daily lives like a tempest, change them forever, and then become mundane. Failed innovations fade and become forgotten.
If we look at history, the creation of technology does not guarantee success. Automobiles first appeared in 1886, but cars only really started changing our lives 27 years later, when the Ford Motor Company built the first moving assembly line in 1913. If you define innovation in terms of an inventor's success, the invention of the first car may be a huge...