Two entrepreneurs who have challenged the existing market dynamics with their disruptive businesses

In business theory, a disruptive innovation is the one that creates a new market and value network, displacing established market-leading firms, products and alliances. The term was defined and first analysed by American scholar Clayton Christensen in 1995 and has been called the most influential business idea of the early 21st century.

Disruptive innovations tend to be produced by outsiders and entrepreneurs in startups, rather than existing market-leading companies. According to Christensen, the business environment of market leaders does not allow them to pursue disruptive innovations when they first arise, because they are not profitable enough at first and because their development can take scarce resources away from sustaining innovation.

Although technology enables a lot and is often at the core of disruptive innovation, businesses don't always have to use revolutionary technology to make a change. Business model innovation has also been used to change how a company delivers value to the customers or captures it from the market.