Åbo Akademi professor Cecilia Sahlgren is criticising a climate in which innovation is widely celebrated, while the time needed to develop new ideas is increasingly hard to accept. In her summer talk, she says the process behind real innovation is often slow and uncertain.

Her comments reflect a broader tension familiar to researchers and developers: society wants quick results, but progress rarely follows a straight line. That makes the issue relevant beyond academia, because pressure for immediate impact can shape how research and development are judged.

According to HBL, Sahlgren raised the point in her summer speech. Her message is that innovation is not only about having ideas, but also about enduring setbacks, revisions and waiting before something new can take shape.