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Epic Disruptions: 11 Innovations That Shaped Our Modern World
A kaleidoscopic look at how eleven disruptive innovations—including the iPhone, the transistor, disposable diapers, and Julia Child's The Art of French Cooking—reshaped industries and societies, propelling humanity toward new frontiers.
From gunpowder to generative AI, the forces of disruption are repeatedly rewriting the rules of business, society, and human possibility. But what drives these revolutionary changes?
In Epic Disruptions, innovation expert Scott Anthony masterfully weaves together the fascinating stories behind history's most transformative disruptions—from ninth-century China to twenty-first-century Silicon Valley. Through eleven pivotal innovations, including the printing press, mass-produced automobiles, the McDonald's revolutionary food system, and the iPhone, Anthony reveals the hidden patterns behind world-changing breakthroughs.
But Epic Disruptions goes beyond just celebrating invention. Through vivid storytelling and sharp analysis, Anthony introduces the iconoclasts who dared to think differently—the Renaissance-era scientists, French cooking enthusiasts, and corporate visionaries who saw opportunities others missed. He reveals how disruption actually happens.
As artificial intelligence and other technologies promise to unleash another wave of transformation, Epic Disruptions arrives at the perfect moment—offering innovators and curious readers a page-turning exploration of how radical change reshapes industries, launches new powers, and, yes, occasionally changes everything.
From gunpowder to generative AI, the forces of disruption are repeatedly rewriting the rules of business, society, and human possibility. But what drives these revolutionary changes?
In Epic Disruptions, innovation expert Scott Anthony masterfully weaves together the fascinating stories behind history's most transformative disruptions—from ninth-century China to twenty-first-century Silicon Valley. Through eleven pivotal innovations, including the printing press, mass-produced automobiles, the McDonald's revolutionary food system, and the iPhone, Anthony reveals the hidden patterns behind world-changing breakthroughs.
But Epic Disruptions goes beyond just celebrating invention. Through vivid storytelling and sharp analysis, Anthony introduces the iconoclasts who dared to think differently—the Renaissance-era scientists, French cooking enthusiasts, and corporate visionaries who saw opportunities others missed. He reveals how disruption actually happens.
As artificial intelligence and other technologies promise to unleash another wave of transformation, Epic Disruptions arrives at the perfect moment—offering innovators and curious readers a page-turning exploration of how radical change reshapes industries, launches new powers, and, yes, occasionally changes everything.
263 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 16, 2025
28 people are currently reading
2355 people want to read
About the author
Scott D. Anthony
15 books78 followersScott D. Anthony is the managing partner of the innovation and growth consulting firm Innosight. Based in Innosight's Singapore office, he also leads its venture capital investment arm (Innosight Ventures). His most recent books are The Little Black Book of Innovation and the new HBR Single, Building a Growth Factory. Follow him on Twitter at @ScottDAnthony.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
November 21, 2025
Four bright stars for a fascinating exploration of epic disruptions that profoundly changed the world that we live in. There are 11 chapters covering such changes as the introduction and use of gunpowder, the printing press, and Julia Child's first cookbook among others. If you want an overview of how these changes came about and how they changed the world, then you will enjoy this book. It is written in simple language and easy for the average person to understand.
One quote: "in 1999 a panel of experts proclaimed Gutenberg the man of the millennium: 'If not for Gutenberg Columbuus [ranked no. 2] might never have set sail, Shakespeare's genius[no.5]could have died with him, and Martin Luther's 'Ninety Five Theses' would have hung on that door unheeded... The printing press... helped spread truth, beauty, and yes heresy through the world."
Thank You Harvard Business Review Press and Scott D. Anthony for sending me this book through LibaryThing
One quote: "in 1999 a panel of experts proclaimed Gutenberg the man of the millennium: 'If not for Gutenberg Columbuus [ranked no. 2] might never have set sail, Shakespeare's genius[no.5]could have died with him, and Martin Luther's 'Ninety Five Theses' would have hung on that door unheeded... The printing press... helped spread truth, beauty, and yes heresy through the world."
Thank You Harvard Business Review Press and Scott D. Anthony for sending me this book through LibaryThing
June 29, 2025
Fascinating account of a range of innovations. Including Florence Nightingale and health improvements through to iPhone. Enjoyable mix of inventions, personalities and disruption journeys. Thank you to the author. Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.
November 12, 2025
I used Epic Disruptions by Scott D. Anthony to teach my MBA course on Leading Through Disruption and Change at Iowa State University, and I have been recommending it ever since as a must-read for the classroom, the boardroom, or anyone who is seeking to understand how to navigate disruption and change. Anthony has created a book that is both insightful and entertaining, blending historical perspective with modern relevance in a way that speaks directly to today’s leaders.
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In my class, Epic Disruptions quickly became more than assigned reading; it became a catalyst for discovery. Anthony’s eleven carefully chosen innovations, from transformative technologies to cultural shifts, provided vivid examples that made abstract leadership concepts tangible. My students were inspired by how seamlessly he connects the great disruptions of history to the challenges of leading in an age of artificial intelligence, remote work, and constant transformation. The discussions it sparked were dynamic, bridging the gap between business theory and real-world application.
What truly distinguishes this book is Anthony’s voice, which is clear, witty, and refreshingly human. He writes with humor and warmth, making complex ideas accessible and deeply relevant. The result is a book that informs and inspires in equal measure.
Whether you are teaching future leaders, guiding an organization through uncertainty, or simply trying to make sense of our fast-changing world, Epic Disruptions is essential reading. It is smart, engaging, and filled with practical wisdom for anyone ready to lead through change with confidence and creativity.
.
In my class, Epic Disruptions quickly became more than assigned reading; it became a catalyst for discovery. Anthony’s eleven carefully chosen innovations, from transformative technologies to cultural shifts, provided vivid examples that made abstract leadership concepts tangible. My students were inspired by how seamlessly he connects the great disruptions of history to the challenges of leading in an age of artificial intelligence, remote work, and constant transformation. The discussions it sparked were dynamic, bridging the gap between business theory and real-world application.
What truly distinguishes this book is Anthony’s voice, which is clear, witty, and refreshingly human. He writes with humor and warmth, making complex ideas accessible and deeply relevant. The result is a book that informs and inspires in equal measure.
Whether you are teaching future leaders, guiding an organization through uncertainty, or simply trying to make sense of our fast-changing world, Epic Disruptions is essential reading. It is smart, engaging, and filled with practical wisdom for anyone ready to lead through change with confidence and creativity.
December 1, 2025
I quite enjoyed this book. Think Friedman's Guns...etc. meets Burke's Connections but more fun. I don't agree with Mr. Anthony on all of his eleven choices, but lists are lists and the top 100 guitarists (to pick a list) from whatever sources rarely include one who I think should be in the top ten. Anyway, we've got a really good survey of the histories of the disruptions (the author says, “I define a disruptive innovation as one that transforms an existing market or creates a new one by making the complicated simple and the expensive affordable.”) with an excellent Notes section of [properly annotated in text] citations you can drill down on AND footnotes!
I like his sense of humor, too. Right in the flow of the first innovation, gunpowder, when relating early Chinese writings on the subject, he drops “Something is happening here, but what it is isn't exactly clear.” And a bit further, after observing that at some point in history someone was trying something to see what worked and what didn't, “I often wonder about the person first thought that a hard-shelled insect wandering in the water would make a delicious meal. Or came up with the idea of intentionally growing mold on cheese and eating it. Daredevils, visionaries, mad-men, indeed.” I wonder that, too.
There's something here for everyone and I appreciate the publisher sending me a review copy through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers Program. Some good jumping off points for me (books to find) and some things to think about.
Curated notes:
“Why do companies overshoot their customers? In business, gravity pulls you up, not down. Companies generally seek to solve the hard problems, to serve the most demanding customers, because that's the path to profits. People will always take improvements but will grow increasingly unwilling to pay for them, creating opportunities for people to change the game.
[...]
So even if a company spots an opportunity to disrupt, its customers don't want it to do so.
This is the innovator's dilemma.”
{A couple of decades ago in grad school, I was doing Industrial Assessments (energy, waste stream, etc) and we would ask what the ROI peroid was. More than not, I was stunned at the short-sightedness of boards of directors (one required a payback period of less than 18 months if an implementation was to be considered, let alone approved.)}
[on organizational focus on optimization]
“That means prioritizing investments to make today better, not those that promise to make tomorrow different.”
[seeds for disruption]
“Anytime there is a barrier to consumption, where consumption requires wealth, specialized skills, a centralized location, or significant amounts of time, there are opportunities for simple, convenient, disruptive solutions.”
[on adoption of new ideas (innovators, early majority, late majority, laggards)]
“Do you remember when you first saw Uber, or first considered using Airbnb for accommodations {Me: early majority}, or tried out ChatGPT {Me:laggard}? Maybe you are an innovator or early adopter who jumped in.”
{Still wary of AI.}
“[…]when an innovation modularly layers into an existing infrastructure-think Instagram or ChatGPT -adoption can be very fast. If an innovation requires a completely new infrastructure-think electric vehicles or the metaverse- it still takes decades.”
“That's the power of disruption. When you make it easy for people to do things themselves, you create the possibility for explosive growth.
That's good for those who enable the growth. It can be bad for people who prospered in an era of constraints.”
{This.}
“I always disliked the title [The Innovator’s DNA], as DNA implies something that is deterministic, while the research clearly shows that most of what makes innovators successful is specific behaviors that can be learned.”
{And this}
[on five behaviors that drive innovation success]
“ 1. Curiosity. Great innovators question the status quo, looking for different and better ways to do things. They ask questions like "Why do we do things this way?" and "How might we do it differently?"”
2. Customer obsession. You can't do something different that creates value unless you solve a problem that matters to a customer.
3. Collaboration
4. The path to innovation success is never a straight line.
5. Empowerment. You can't do something that creates value unless you actually do something.”
[For the publisher/author/editor]
Page 51
“For centuries, Godin's research showed that innovation was frowned on. This attitude began to change in the seventeenth century.”
{This reads wrong, as if Godin’s research was around for centuries. I think it could be “Godin’s research showed that for centuries, innovation was frowned upon.”}
I like his sense of humor, too. Right in the flow of the first innovation, gunpowder, when relating early Chinese writings on the subject, he drops “Something is happening here, but what it is isn't exactly clear.” And a bit further, after observing that at some point in history someone was trying something to see what worked and what didn't, “I often wonder about the person first thought that a hard-shelled insect wandering in the water would make a delicious meal. Or came up with the idea of intentionally growing mold on cheese and eating it. Daredevils, visionaries, mad-men, indeed.” I wonder that, too.
There's something here for everyone and I appreciate the publisher sending me a review copy through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers Program. Some good jumping off points for me (books to find) and some things to think about.
Curated notes:
“Why do companies overshoot their customers? In business, gravity pulls you up, not down. Companies generally seek to solve the hard problems, to serve the most demanding customers, because that's the path to profits. People will always take improvements but will grow increasingly unwilling to pay for them, creating opportunities for people to change the game.
[...]
So even if a company spots an opportunity to disrupt, its customers don't want it to do so.
This is the innovator's dilemma.”
{A couple of decades ago in grad school, I was doing Industrial Assessments (energy, waste stream, etc) and we would ask what the ROI peroid was. More than not, I was stunned at the short-sightedness of boards of directors (one required a payback period of less than 18 months if an implementation was to be considered, let alone approved.)}
[on organizational focus on optimization]
“That means prioritizing investments to make today better, not those that promise to make tomorrow different.”
[seeds for disruption]
“Anytime there is a barrier to consumption, where consumption requires wealth, specialized skills, a centralized location, or significant amounts of time, there are opportunities for simple, convenient, disruptive solutions.”
[on adoption of new ideas (innovators, early majority, late majority, laggards)]
“Do you remember when you first saw Uber, or first considered using Airbnb for accommodations {Me: early majority}, or tried out ChatGPT {Me:laggard}? Maybe you are an innovator or early adopter who jumped in.”
{Still wary of AI.}
“[…]when an innovation modularly layers into an existing infrastructure-think Instagram or ChatGPT -adoption can be very fast. If an innovation requires a completely new infrastructure-think electric vehicles or the metaverse- it still takes decades.”
“That's the power of disruption. When you make it easy for people to do things themselves, you create the possibility for explosive growth.
That's good for those who enable the growth. It can be bad for people who prospered in an era of constraints.”
{This.}
“I always disliked the title [The Innovator’s DNA], as DNA implies something that is deterministic, while the research clearly shows that most of what makes innovators successful is specific behaviors that can be learned.”
{And this}
[on five behaviors that drive innovation success]
“ 1. Curiosity. Great innovators question the status quo, looking for different and better ways to do things. They ask questions like "Why do we do things this way?" and "How might we do it differently?"”
2. Customer obsession. You can't do something different that creates value unless you solve a problem that matters to a customer.
3. Collaboration
4. The path to innovation success is never a straight line.
5. Empowerment. You can't do something that creates value unless you actually do something.”
[For the publisher/author/editor]
Page 51
“For centuries, Godin's research showed that innovation was frowned on. This attitude began to change in the seventeenth century.”
{This reads wrong, as if Godin’s research was around for centuries. I think it could be “Godin’s research showed that for centuries, innovation was frowned upon.”}
November 6, 2025
Innovation moves in patterns. Studying history to detect and understand those patterns is the best way to brace yourself for a future of hyper-sonic technological progress. Scott D. Anthony has produced an outstanding and enjoybale guide that will help you do just that. Epic Disruptions: 11 Innovations that Shaped Our Modern World is a gripping account of how breakthroughs not just changed industries, but entire societes, from the printing press to steel mills and the iPhone. He shows what diapers, AI, and McDonald’s teach us about the great disruptions of tomorrow.
In the end, Anthony even ventures a direct look into what’s next, basically concluding that the technologies of tomorrow are echoeing off the case examples in the book. Gen AI echoes the printing press, cleantech (gunpowder), smart health (Florence Nightingale), autonomous vehicles (Model T), drones (the transistor), new food like lab-grown meat (McDonald’s), cryptocurrency (Julia Child), additive manufacturing (Pampers), robotics (Bethlehem Steel), and augmented reality (the iPhone).
Scott D. Anthony is the world’s number one leading innovative thinker according to Thinkers50. He is a clinical professor at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, where his research and teaching focuses on the adaptive challenges of disruptive change. Moreover, he has previously spent more than 20 years at Innosight, working alongside the legendary Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensen. And it shows. Epic Disruptions manages to distill the most important lessons of history to teach us about the structure of progress.
Anthony’s style makes the book a page-turner. He masterfully weaves together his personal expertise, gripping storytelling, and the theory behind disruptive innovation in an engagingly light-hearted read. The writing feels like a conversation with an exceptionally witty friend - the tone is genuinely amusing and trickles down from titles (“Bacon (Not the Food) and Boyle”) to footnotes. Always make sure to read Anthony’s footnotes.
I have had the pleasure to interview Anthony in the September 2025 edition of The New Frontier. We discussed about the geniuses behind epic disruptions that went on to challenge the status quo, about how disruptive innovation is different to sustaining innovation, and the importance of the cost structure. Make sure to read the interview along the book.
This review is originally published within the Money Book Cirlcle in my newsletter. Sign up here for regular reviews of the hottest books on money and technology: https://igorpejic.substack.com/
In the end, Anthony even ventures a direct look into what’s next, basically concluding that the technologies of tomorrow are echoeing off the case examples in the book. Gen AI echoes the printing press, cleantech (gunpowder), smart health (Florence Nightingale), autonomous vehicles (Model T), drones (the transistor), new food like lab-grown meat (McDonald’s), cryptocurrency (Julia Child), additive manufacturing (Pampers), robotics (Bethlehem Steel), and augmented reality (the iPhone).
Scott D. Anthony is the world’s number one leading innovative thinker according to Thinkers50. He is a clinical professor at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, where his research and teaching focuses on the adaptive challenges of disruptive change. Moreover, he has previously spent more than 20 years at Innosight, working alongside the legendary Harvard Business School professor Clayton Christensen. And it shows. Epic Disruptions manages to distill the most important lessons of history to teach us about the structure of progress.
Anthony’s style makes the book a page-turner. He masterfully weaves together his personal expertise, gripping storytelling, and the theory behind disruptive innovation in an engagingly light-hearted read. The writing feels like a conversation with an exceptionally witty friend - the tone is genuinely amusing and trickles down from titles (“Bacon (Not the Food) and Boyle”) to footnotes. Always make sure to read Anthony’s footnotes.
I have had the pleasure to interview Anthony in the September 2025 edition of The New Frontier. We discussed about the geniuses behind epic disruptions that went on to challenge the status quo, about how disruptive innovation is different to sustaining innovation, and the importance of the cost structure. Make sure to read the interview along the book.
This review is originally published within the Money Book Cirlcle in my newsletter. Sign up here for regular reviews of the hottest books on money and technology: https://igorpejic.substack.com/
December 30, 2025
One of my favorite business books was "The Innovator's Dilemma" by Clay Christensen. "Epic Disruptions" is a new book that takes Clay Christensen’s idea of disruptive innovation and looks at it across centuries, not just modern tech. Anthony’s main point is simple but powerful: disruption is how progress actually happens. Real breakthroughs often start off looking worse on the surface, but they win by being cheaper, simpler, or more accessible. That framing alone makes you rethink how we judge “good” ideas early on.
One thing I really liked is how personal the book feels. Anthony was a student, colleague, and close friend of Clay Christensen, and you can feel that influence throughout. He walks through eleven “epic disruptions” — from gunpowder and the printing press to the scientific revolution, disposable diapers, Julia Child, McDonald’s, and the iPhone — and shows how many of them sat around for years (sometimes decades) before finally taking off. Most “overnight successes” turn out to be anything but.
Anthony also doesn’t pretend disruption is all upside. It creates real tradeoffs and real consequences, many of which we don’t see until much later. Still, his view is ultimately optimistic: disruption has historically allowed more people to do things that matter to them by making the complex simple and the expensive affordable. Paying attention to the ideas that might look small or imperfect today but could end up changing everything.
One thing I really liked is how personal the book feels. Anthony was a student, colleague, and close friend of Clay Christensen, and you can feel that influence throughout. He walks through eleven “epic disruptions” — from gunpowder and the printing press to the scientific revolution, disposable diapers, Julia Child, McDonald’s, and the iPhone — and shows how many of them sat around for years (sometimes decades) before finally taking off. Most “overnight successes” turn out to be anything but.
Anthony also doesn’t pretend disruption is all upside. It creates real tradeoffs and real consequences, many of which we don’t see until much later. Still, his view is ultimately optimistic: disruption has historically allowed more people to do things that matter to them by making the complex simple and the expensive affordable. Paying attention to the ideas that might look small or imperfect today but could end up changing everything.
November 18, 2025
điều mình ấn tượng là kiểu, ta cứ nghĩ châu Âu luôn đổi mới, tiến bộ nhưng thực ra cũng có một thời kỳ lịch sử chống lại sự đổi mới, muốn mọi thứ ở dưới trật từ, và tất cả lời dạy của nhà thờ là chân lý không được cãi (hello Galileo, Copernicus!)
tự nhiên tôi lại nhớ đến gì mà, phụ nữ Anh thời Victoria đại loại vậy, đại khái là người ta cho là phụ nữ không có ham muốn/khoái cảm tình dục gì, và khi hành sự thì ờ cứ nằm đấy mà ráng tận hưởng và....nghĩ về nước Anh :D nghe giống đẻ vì yêu nước bây giờ ghê :v
đây là một đoạn tả một bệnh viện quân y ở Anh thế kỷ 19: "Tuy nhiên, bên trong thì... Bệnh nhân được nhồi nhét trên nệm rơm. Cửa sổ đóng kín giữ không khí lạnh bên ngoài nhưng để không khí hôi thối lắng xuống và lưu thông. Không có quần áo sạch. Không có khăn trải giường sạch. Không có băng gạc sạch. Khẩu phần có giòi. Các chất bí ẩn làm nước đục ngầu và khiến các y tá uống rượu vang hoặc bia thay thế. Chuột chạy khắp bệnh viện. Da lính bò lổm ngổm chấy và bọ chét. Cứ mỗi bốn mươi bệnh nhân mắc bệnh lỵ, thì có một cái bô (chamber pot)."
oh wow
chăm sóc trước bệnh viện
tự nhiên tôi lại nhớ đến gì mà, phụ nữ Anh thời Victoria đại loại vậy, đại khái là người ta cho là phụ nữ không có ham muốn/khoái cảm tình dục gì, và khi hành sự thì ờ cứ nằm đấy mà ráng tận hưởng và....nghĩ về nước Anh :D nghe giống đẻ vì yêu nước bây giờ ghê :v
đây là một đoạn tả một bệnh viện quân y ở Anh thế kỷ 19: "Tuy nhiên, bên trong thì... Bệnh nhân được nhồi nhét trên nệm rơm. Cửa sổ đóng kín giữ không khí lạnh bên ngoài nhưng để không khí hôi thối lắng xuống và lưu thông. Không có quần áo sạch. Không có khăn trải giường sạch. Không có băng gạc sạch. Khẩu phần có giòi. Các chất bí ẩn làm nước đục ngầu và khiến các y tá uống rượu vang hoặc bia thay thế. Chuột chạy khắp bệnh viện. Da lính bò lổm ngổm chấy và bọ chét. Cứ mỗi bốn mươi bệnh nhân mắc bệnh lỵ, thì có một cái bô (chamber pot)."
oh wow
chăm sóc trước bệnh viện
November 30, 2025
This book is a reminder that the world we live in was built through long, messy, and often underestimated innovations. The book walks through eleven breakthroughs — from the printing press to the iPhone — showing how ideas that once looked marginal ended up rewriting entire industries and social norms. It’s not theory; it’s a sober look at how real disruption actually happens.
Key learnings:
• Most transformative innovations begin as “not good enough,” just like early mobile phones or the first disposable diapers.
• True disruption often appears on the fringe before dominating the mainstream — the iPhone was dismissed as a niche device at launch.
• Breakthroughs follow patterns: new value, new users, new business models.
• Progress is built on repeated experimentation, slow iteration, and years of failure behind the scenes.
• Understanding past disruptions gives leaders a practical lens for responding to emerging shifts such as AI, clean energy, and automation.
Key learnings:
• Most transformative innovations begin as “not good enough,” just like early mobile phones or the first disposable diapers.
• True disruption often appears on the fringe before dominating the mainstream — the iPhone was dismissed as a niche device at launch.
• Breakthroughs follow patterns: new value, new users, new business models.
• Progress is built on repeated experimentation, slow iteration, and years of failure behind the scenes.
• Understanding past disruptions gives leaders a practical lens for responding to emerging shifts such as AI, clean energy, and automation.
November 6, 2025
For those of you who don’t know, Scott D Anthony is Professor at The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and a regular in the Thinkers50 top ten.
Disruption is a word that is thrown around easily and often in modern business. This is due in large part to the work of our mutual Professor, Clayton Christensen, who developed the theory of Disruptive Innovation.
In this quick read, Scott goes over several examples throughout history where disruptive innovations changed the world, propelling humanity forward.
Disruption is often widely misunderstood. Understanding the patterns is crucial for any business leader today, especially with today’s AI obsession.
If you have the chance to pick up Epic Disruptions, I highly recommend it. A great read that will help leaders everywhere.
Disruption is a word that is thrown around easily and often in modern business. This is due in large part to the work of our mutual Professor, Clayton Christensen, who developed the theory of Disruptive Innovation.
In this quick read, Scott goes over several examples throughout history where disruptive innovations changed the world, propelling humanity forward.
Disruption is often widely misunderstood. Understanding the patterns is crucial for any business leader today, especially with today’s AI obsession.
If you have the chance to pick up Epic Disruptions, I highly recommend it. A great read that will help leaders everywhere.
November 8, 2025
My favourite chapter of this book was, unsurprisingly, the one on Julia Child. As a life-long fan, it was great to see her recognised as an epic disruptor. With another 10 innovations (including the iPhone, McDonalds, and the printing press) also selected by the author, we gain a good insight into what makes a product or service disruptive, and what we should look for in the future.
A fascinating read, with a lot of referencing of the late, great Clay Christensen, an American business consultant who developed the theory of "disruptive innovation", often considered the most influential business idea of the early 21st century.
Thank you NetGalley and Harvard Business Review Press for providing me with an e-ARC.
A fascinating read, with a lot of referencing of the late, great Clay Christensen, an American business consultant who developed the theory of "disruptive innovation", often considered the most influential business idea of the early 21st century.
Thank you NetGalley and Harvard Business Review Press for providing me with an e-ARC.
October 30, 2025
The book felt like being back in the classroom with Professor Anthony in the best possible way: learning from one of the best, with his usual clarity, excitement, and insight.
I loved his storytelling approach as he explored disruptive innovation through different inventions. It was fascinating to discover the stories behind everyday innovations and to debunk common myths. The book allows you to grasp the business concepts without ever feeling heavy. It left me thinking about how disruptive innovation takes place and how we could predict the next ones, particularly relevant for anyone thinking about the future and AI.
I loved his storytelling approach as he explored disruptive innovation through different inventions. It was fascinating to discover the stories behind everyday innovations and to debunk common myths. The book allows you to grasp the business concepts without ever feeling heavy. It left me thinking about how disruptive innovation takes place and how we could predict the next ones, particularly relevant for anyone thinking about the future and AI.
September 15, 2025
Received from giveaway at Goodreads. The author picks 11 innovations that truly impacted the world including the printing press, gunpowder, and the IPhone. He tries to give a brief history of the invention and how it impacted the world at the time. He also brings in ideas of how you could apply this innovation or at least the innovative techniques to your own innovation attempts. I think this book would be good for a R&D team or innovation group. The general population will find it interesting but maybe will miss the big picture he is trying to pull forward.
November 2, 2025
Epic Disruptions is a fascinating, fast-paced tour through the breakthroughs that changed everything—from the printing press to the iPhone. Anthony brings these moments to life with sharp insight and great storytelling, showing how real innovation takes root and spreads. The book redefines what “disruption” means and proves that world-changing ideas are rarely accidents. He reveals the patterns behind the breakthroughs that shaped modern life—and hints at what might be coming next. A smart, energizing read that sticks with you.
November 12, 2025
I read "Epic Disruptions: 11 Innovations That Shaped Our Modern World" for a graduate course, and it has been incredibly insightful. The book does a fantastic job of showing that disruption isn’t new; it has been shaping industries and societies for centuries. I especially appreciate how it connects historical innovations to patterns we still see today. It’s made me rethink how products and people I thought I understood actually developed over time. If you’re interested in understanding the roots of change and innovation, this book is a great read.
December 6, 2025
Innovation is a process that demands determination, problem-solving, and patience before it can truly become disruptive. Gunpowder, the printing press, the iPhone, and the steel industry all began as single ideas that were developed, expanded, and pushed forward over many years until they transformed their worlds. As one fitting quote reminds us: “Disruption is about making the complicated simple and the expensive affordable.”
November 22, 2025
Not quite what I was expecting, but still interesting. I really read this because I just finished My Life in France by Julia Child and she was one of the innovators he mentioned. He also wrote about gunpowder, the transistor, the iPhone, disposable diapers and more.
My mistake was that I thought the book was from a science perspective, but it was about the business view of things. I still enjoyed it, but there were parts I skipped because I didn't understand.
I got this for free in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Library Thing and the publisher.
My mistake was that I thought the book was from a science perspective, but it was about the business view of things. I still enjoyed it, but there were parts I skipped because I didn't understand.
I got this for free in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Library Thing and the publisher.
November 17, 2025
Great read to explore the great innovators in history. Tells many stories related to the persistence and passion toward their goal to deliver on something that hasn't been done before!! In a quick win culture, the steady movement toward a long term goal was amazing to contemplate.
November 28, 2025
quick, easy, informative read!
November 2, 2025
📖 Book Notes - Epic Disruptions
Epic Disruptions is a chatty, interesting description of history - through the lens of innovation. Each chapter takes you to a different time and circumstance, and attempts to illustrate the range and profound impact that innovation has had - and will continue to have - on how we live our lives.
This breadth means that some chapters hit home more than others. The chapter on the transistor, for example, was entirely a miss for me - but the one on Florence Nightingale was epic (yes, I'm aware of the pun). The printing press was interesting, the scientific revolution was a bit vague, and the Julia Child one may have been one of my favourites. The good thing about the format though is it is very much like a buffet - if something isn't your jam, you can skip it and move on.
Easily the best thing about this book is the tone of the author. Having had the pleasure of being in a virtual class that Scott Anthony took, I can attest to the fact that how he speaks and teaches is how he writes: Engaging, smooth, funny and sharp all at once. Scott is able to write about serious topics without taking himself seriously at all, and please read his footnotes - they're hilarious and brought so much colour to the book.
If this is what research-based, important management reading can be, I wish more authors would take note! An absolute pleasure to read.
Epic Disruptions is a chatty, interesting description of history - through the lens of innovation. Each chapter takes you to a different time and circumstance, and attempts to illustrate the range and profound impact that innovation has had - and will continue to have - on how we live our lives.
This breadth means that some chapters hit home more than others. The chapter on the transistor, for example, was entirely a miss for me - but the one on Florence Nightingale was epic (yes, I'm aware of the pun). The printing press was interesting, the scientific revolution was a bit vague, and the Julia Child one may have been one of my favourites. The good thing about the format though is it is very much like a buffet - if something isn't your jam, you can skip it and move on.
Easily the best thing about this book is the tone of the author. Having had the pleasure of being in a virtual class that Scott Anthony took, I can attest to the fact that how he speaks and teaches is how he writes: Engaging, smooth, funny and sharp all at once. Scott is able to write about serious topics without taking himself seriously at all, and please read his footnotes - they're hilarious and brought so much colour to the book.
If this is what research-based, important management reading can be, I wish more authors would take note! An absolute pleasure to read.
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