Counting startups can offer a useful first look at an innovation economy, but it does not show the whole picture. A model presented in Seoul, South Korea, offers a broader way to understand how companies move through an innovation ecosystem and how a small number of standout businesses can influence a country’s profile.
The model treats the ecosystem as a pyramid. Startups form the base, scaleups sit above them, and scalers and super-scalers occupy the top. That structure shifts attention from the number of young companies alone to the companies that gain enough strength to move upward.
A pyramid for measuring innovation
At the base are startups, including companies that have shown enough traction to raise more than $1 million in venture capital. These businesses represent an important part of the ecosystem, but the model does not stop there. It also tracks scaleups, then looks at the scalers and super-scalers at the top of the pyramid.
The upper levels matter because the count of scalers and super-scalers can significantly affect a country’s innovation profile. A country may have many startups, yet its position in the innovation economy can look different if few companies move into the higher levels. The model therefore places attention on growth and movement through the ecosystem, not only on the number of companies at its base.
Alberto Onetti of Mind the Bridge presented the model in Seoul. Its central idea is simple: an innovation economy includes several connected groups, and each group helps show a different part of the country’s capacity to produce and grow innovative companies.
There is another group that can be missed in this kind of measurement: innovative small and medium-sized enterprises. These companies form a second population that is often under-measured, even though they contribute to the economy’s innovation capacity.
That gap matters because innovation does not belong only to companies that attract major attention or reach the top of the pyramid. Innovative SMEs add another layer to the picture, giving the model a way to recognize businesses that contribute to innovation without being counted among the most visible growth companies.
Where companies begin and how they grow
Many technology companies emerge from local universities and research centers. From there, they can move upward into startups and scaleups, connecting research activity with the company stages shown in the pyramid.
This path links the starting point of an idea with the later stages of company growth. Universities and research centers can produce technology companies, while startups and scaleups show how those companies develop within the wider innovation ecosystem. The model brings these stages together instead of treating them as separate stories.
The result is a richer view of innovation capacity. Startup numbers still matter, but they sit alongside scaleups, scalers, super-scalers, and innovative SMEs. The pyramid also highlights why the companies at the top can affect the way an entire country’s innovation economy is understood.
Japan turns to corporate venture capital
The discussion in South Korea connects with a separate development in Japan, where corporate venture capital is considered a critical strategic option as technologies such as robotics and artificial intelligence evolve.
Japan Airlines Ventures is part of that conversation. Shiro Matsuzaki, managing partner at Japan Airlines Ventures, described CVC investment as a way to explore unfamiliar territory rather than simply place money into companies. “I believe the primary role of CVCs is to use investment as a means to uncover and make sense of what is genuinely different about each.”
That view gives corporate venture capital a role beyond funding. Investment becomes a method for uncovering what is not yet known and understanding what makes each company different. In a technology environment shaped by robotics and artificial intelligence, that search for understanding becomes a strategic choice.
Matsuzaki also connected this approach with uncertainty and the need to look ahead. “As we are in this era of uncertainties, we think companies with the capability to scout what’s next will continue to win.”
Together, the South Korean measurement model and Japan’s CVC focus point to the same broad question: how can an innovation economy identify the companies and capabilities that will shape its future? The pyramid measures movement from startups toward the highest-performing companies, while corporate venture capital uses investment to uncover what is different and what may come next.
The developments dated September 10, 2026 and September 04, 2026 show two ways to examine innovation. One maps the ecosystem and its company stages. The other uses corporate investment to explore emerging technologies and unfamiliar opportunities. Both place attention on more than activity at the starting line.
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