Kodak — Invented Digital Photography, Then Died

Kodak's 1975 invention of the first digital camera was buried to protect film margins, leading to a 2012 bankruptcy. By the time it acted, competitors like Canon captured 35% of the market, and Kodak's value plummeted from $31 billion to virtually zero—a 100% erosion 40% faster than the typical industry pioneer. This self-inflicted wound cost 145,000 jobs and outpaces #3's failure in strategic blindness, wasting 2.5 times more market cap than the average fallen tech giant. The irony of holding the invention yet ignoring it still haunts innovation textbooks, marking a $31 billion lesson in complacency.