Title: From protection to selective exposure: commercial demonstrations as steppingstones for upscaled technology diffusion

Authors: Viktor Werner; Ksenia Onufrey; Thomas Magnusson

Addresses: Department of Management and Engineering, Linköping University, SE-58183 Linköping, Sweden ' Department of Management and Engineering, Linköping University, SE-58183 Linköping, Sweden ' Department of Management and Engineering, Linköping University, SE-58183 Linköping, Sweden; Center for Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Learning Research, Halmstad University, Box 823, SE-30118 Halmstad, Sweden

Abstract: Examining how actively constructed processes of demand articulation can enable upscaled technology diffusion, this paper introduces a distinction between pre-commercial and commercial demonstrations. The paper argues that these two forms of demonstration play different roles in the adoption of innovative technologies. Whereas pre-commercial demonstrations are initiated to facilitate entry into niche markets, commercial demonstrations are devised to ease entry to mass markets. The paper presents a comparative case analysis of commercial demonstration projects featuring electrified heavy trucks in urban applications. The analysis focuses on the relation between the technologies and the selection environments they operate in, showing how stakeholders actively shape selection environments in commercial demonstrations. The analysis further shows how network relationships and lessons learned empower stakeholders to articulate forceful demands on institutional changes that promote an upscaled technology diffusion.

Keywords: demand articulation; electric vehicle; market niche; demonstration; technology diffusion; upscaled diffusion.

DOI: 10.1504/IJATM.2021.116604

International Journal of Automotive Technology and Management, 2021 Vol.21 No.3, pp.250 - 272

Received: 09 Sep 2020
Accepted: 09 Dec 2020
Published online: 28 Jul 2021 *

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