One can’t help but be fascinated by the fact that most of the amazing technologies, we use today have something to do with the research and technological development done during the World Wars. Fear is a very strong emotion and often quite underrated. It was the fear of being attacked that led members of the Allies and Axis powers to indulge in extensive military research and technological development in a very short span of time. The point of starting this article with this notion is in no way to endorse the idea of war; it is an attempt to understand the fervour and drive behind some of the most useful inventions and research in science.

It is believed that true alchemists could turn anything to gold; perhaps they knew how investing in gold would be so profitable in 2011! It is possible that it was the greed for gold that led them to explore the natural elements present in our planet, but we still owe them a lot for their contribution in science and medicine. Alchemists were the game changers of their time, much like nuclear scientists, aeronautical and telecommunication engineers and inventors at the time of the World Wars. This brings us to the most important question of this discussion – who are the game changers of our time? It is most certainly the technology industry. After all, our lives almost completely revolve around the many technologies of the new millennium – the iPod, smartphones and tablet computers. We spend hours uploading photos, updating our statuses on social networks, and sharing news and opinions. Every new start-up emerging from the Silicon Valley seems to contribute to the development of a technology – an amazing app or a product – that makes our lives easier, more interesting and ironically, more complex.

Isn’t it upsetting to see that most of the gifted minds of our time have employed their knowledge and skills to make products (Web-based and otherwise) that either make us too dependent or insist that we put up with sneaky product placement? A counter argument could be that it facilitates young entrepreneurs ‘with a big plan’ to make money and accomplish social media fame. No doubt, it is a great time for innovation in technology and to be a technology-based entrepreneur. The resources are available, as are the success stories where we witness young entrepreneurs achieving so much in so little time that it seems too good to be true – and it is. It creates a false impression that starting a company is a workable and convenient excuse to dump your nine-to-five job and be your own boss. There are so many untold stories of failures that never make it to Techcrunch, Mashable or Slideshare.

The success stories that actually make it big are not necessarily the ones that showcase a successful start-up with a lasting product; they may very well be a successful start-up with a lucky break.

We can’t really blame start-ups for investing time and money into products that end up becoming the entertaining, oft-addictive, apps on our smartphones. However, an idea similar to a hit product only looks fancy on paper; it doesn’t always have the same result. The question is, have start-ups or even the technology big-wigs ever stopped thinking about products that could be game changers?

If we look at the local market, we will see that inspired by their western contemporaries, young entrepreneurs in Pakistan feel the need to replicate socially popular ideas or business models of the West, and adapt them for local users. In the long run, this approach is bound to fail. A word of advice to all the young Pakistani innovators out there is, broaden your horizon and look at case studies of decades-old technology companies in Pakistan that made it big at a time when there was no concept of social media. They put all the chips on the table and burned all boats to make a lasting impression. Their aim was not only to bring jobs to the local markets but also to give the society a good product.

The last few years have incubated a somewhat-disappointing trend in the tech industry. Most of the products launched have come from tech giants; and these products have mainly been used for entertainment purposes by rich consumers. Start-ups, like application development companies are busy developing apps that only add value to these toys. When was the last time we heard of a state-of-the-art innovation in the field of medical science, or a technology in education that facilitated students who had no access to books or real schools? The thing that put the alchemists to work could have been either curiosity or greed; survival was a key factor for scientists during the World Wars. For today’s innovators, it seems that the driving forces are a quick buck and the rock star status.