The concept of predictable evolution of technological systems, proposed by Genrikh Altshuller, implies that various contributing factors such as the efforts of individuals producing breakthrough inventions, market forces, political conditions, cultural traditions, etc. may greatly affect the pace of this evolution (speed it up or slow it down), but they cannot significantly alter its direction. The steam engine, electric motor, automobile, airplane, radio, ball pen, laser, transistor, integrated circuit, and all other major innovations would have been invented sooner or later even if their actual creators were not born.

This chapter describes the laws of technological system evolution that are the conceptual foundation of TRIZ. A judicious use of these laws may greatly contribute to success in business and engineering practices, since technology leaders and designers are able to identify the most promising innovations among numerous candidates. These laws can also be used to efficiently develop novel technologies and products, to objectively assess those systems' business potential, and to predict what competitors may come up with.

Laws of technological system evolution

Technological systems are not frozen entities. They are in a state of continuous change in order to satisfy the changing needs of society and to survive in a very competitive global market. The evolution of any technological system can be presented as a set of stages, with the system at each stage being distinct from the system at the previous stage.