HN Explorer

Ask HN: What companies have successfully disrupted themselves?

2 points by skewart ↗ HN
What companies have radically changed profitable products or business lines to better position themselves for the future? I'm curious about companies that, despite current success, have seen the writing on the wall and made major changes in order to adapt to emerging technological trends.

Apple and Intel are two that come to mind (though Intel didn't really disrupt themselves in the classic sense). Apple developed the iPhone when the iPod was already successful. Intel saw memory being commodities and switched to making CPUs. Are there any smaller companies that have made similar changes?

I'm especially interested in non-tech companies that changed their culture and product to embrace technology. Are there any that have successfully pulled this off?

Also, just to be clear, not looking for early stage companies that were struggling to find product-market fit and then pivoted. I'm looking for companies that were massively successful and then changed while riding high in order to better position themselves for the future.

3 comments

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jrpt
The iPhone is an evolution of the iPod, not really disrupting it. Some people might call it a disruption but I view it more as an evolution.

However, Intel is definitely a good example.

Netflix is another good one.

nostrademons
IBM, 3 times. They started out as a punch card & tabulating machine company, then ended up dominating mainframes as computers started to replace electromechanical machines. Then they launched the IBM PC and legitimized the PC market when it started to disrupt business machines. Then they pivoted into services when their failure to hold the PC market almost bankrupted the company.

3M also. Started out as a mining company, then moved into abrasives, then into adhesives.

Dupont. Started out in gunpowder, moved to dynamite when that technology threatened to replace gunpowder, then got into nukes in WW2. Oh, and also into rubber and plastics.

dbcurtis
Weber. They made marker buoys. Some of the welders got the bright idea to turn a buoy shell into a barbecue grill. There is a bigger market for grills than buoys...