From investment to innovation: a systematic review of how corporate venture capital drives business model innovation

How does corporate venture capital (CVC) drive business model innovation (BMI)? This paper provides a comprehensive overview of past studies at the intersection of CVC and BMI for both scholars and practitioners. Based on a sample of 52 studies published between 1990 and 2025, we identify seven key dimensions along which CVC influences BMI: (1) corporate characteristics, (2) CVC program characteristics, (3) interorganizational collaboration networks, (4) interorganizational knowledge and resource exchange, (5) dynamic capability development, (6) innovation of the value proposition, and (7) innovation of the cost model. Additionally, we map the implications of CVC for BMI across different corporate and CVC program characteristics. Our analysis reveals critical research gaps, particularly concerning non-customer-facing innovation outcomes and differences across alternative CVC program and corporate characteristics. This highlights a prevailing emphasis on technological and product innovation in literature, often overlooking the contextual diversity in CVC-driven innovation.