Corporate innovation hubs (CIHs) are established to help large firms explore emerging technologies, yet most fail to create a lasting impact. Siemens’s AI Lab is a rare exception. In a longitudinal study (2017–2025), we show how Siemens avoided “innovation theater” by operating its AI Lab as a dynamic platform that continuously recalibrated its goals, value proposition, and operating model. A three-phase evolution model—from exploring AI use cases, to establishing itself as an AI pioneer, to facilitating AI-driven transformation—illustrates how CIHs can remain relevant over time. Above all, the Lab created value by enabling others to innovate, not by owning innovation.
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Gutmann et al. (2026) studied this question.
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