{"id":4902,"date":"2026-04-27T13:46:28","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T11:46:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/?p=4902"},"modified":"2026-04-27T13:46:32","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T11:46:32","slug":"hidden-champions-breaking-the-urban-bias-in-innovation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/hidden-champions-breaking-the-urban-bias-in-innovation\/","title":{"rendered":"Hidden Champions: Breaking the Urban Bias in Innovation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Are cities really the engines of innovation? Together with Thilo Lang, we explore how \u201chidden champions\u201d &#8211; global leaders in niche markets &#8211; are distributed across regions and operate with similar innovation dynamics regardless of location. The conversation challenges urban bias and rethinks how we understand peripherality and regional development.<\/p>\n<div class=\"elementToProof\">Find Thilo Lang on <a title=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/thilo-lang-72814218\/\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/thilo-lang-72814218\/\">LinkedIn<\/a>, <a id=\"OWA65fdc9bc-7280-9dae-6538-816012349715\" class=\"OWAAutoLink\" title=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=u2leh8gAAAAJ&amp;hl=de\" href=\"https:\/\/scholar.google.com\/citations?user=u2leh8gAAAAJ&amp;hl=de\">Google Scholar<\/a>\u00a0and the website of the <a id=\"OWA7634fcda-ea61-dd1c-cbe7-d4dfc3416689\" class=\"OWAAutoLink\" title=\"https:\/\/www.uni-leipzig.de\/en\/profile\/mitarbeiter\/dr-thilo-lang\" href=\"https:\/\/www.uni-leipzig.de\/en\/profile\/mitarbeiter\/dr-thilo-lang\">Leibniz Institute for Regional Geography<\/a>, where he is also the Head of the Department.<\/div>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<div class=\"elementToProof\">Please follow the <a title=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/centre-for-innovation-research\/\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/centre-for-innovation-research\/\">Centre for Innovation Research<\/a>\u00a0and the <a title=\"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/category\/reginno\/\" href=\"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/category\/reginno\/\">RegInno Podcast<\/a>\u00a0for other episodes.<\/div>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<div class=\"elementToProof\">#RegInno_Podcast<\/div>\n<div>\u00a0<\/div>\n<div><a href=\"https:\/\/podcast.uis.no\/media\/SIF\/2026_0312_1619.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Episode transcription<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_3804\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-4902-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/erasmus_enfermera_espaola\/dts.podtrac.com\/redirect.mp3\/podcast.uis.no\/media\/SIF\/2026_0312_1619_MASTER.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/erasmus_enfermera_espaola\/dts.podtrac.com\/redirect.mp3\/podcast.uis.no\/media\/SIF\/2026_0312_1619_MASTER.mp3\">https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/erasmus_enfermera_espaola\/dts.podtrac.com\/redirect.mp3\/podcast.uis.no\/media\/SIF\/2026_0312_1619_MASTER.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/erasmus_enfermera_espaola\/dts.podtrac.com\/redirect.mp3\/podcast.uis.no\/media\/SIF\/2026_0312_1619_MASTER.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/?powerpress_pinw=4902-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/erasmus_enfermera_espaola\/dts.podtrac.com\/redirect.mp3\/podcast.uis.no\/media\/SIF\/2026_0312_1619_MASTER.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"2026_0312_1619_MASTER.mp3\">Download<\/a> (Duration: 21:00 &#8212; 28.8MB) | <a href=\"#\" class=\"powerpress_link_e\" title=\"Embed\" onclick=\"return powerpress_show_embed('4902-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Embed<\/a><\/p><p class=\"powerpress_embed_box\" id=\"powerpress_embed_4902-podcast\" style=\"display: none;\"><input id=\"powerpress_embed_4902-podcast_t\" type=\"text\" value=\"&lt;iframe width=&quot;320&quot; height=&quot;30&quot; src=&quot;https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/?powerpress_embed=4902-podcast&amp;amp;powerpress_player=mediaelement-audio&quot; title=&quot;Blubrry Podcast Player&quot; frameborder=&quot;0&quot; scrolling=&quot;no&quot;&gt;&lt;\/iframe&gt;\" onclick=\"javascript: this.select();\" onfocus=\"javascript: this.select();\" style=\"width: 70%;\" readOnly><\/p><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_subscribe_links\">Subscribe: <a href=\"https:\/\/subscribebyemail.com\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/feed\/podcast\/\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_email\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Subscribe by Email\" rel=\"nofollow\">Email<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/feed\/podcast\/\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_rss\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Subscribe via RSS\" rel=\"nofollow\">RSS<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_more\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"More\" rel=\"nofollow\">More<\/a><\/p><!--powerpress_player-->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are cities really the engines of innovation? Together with Thilo Lang, we explore how \u201chidden champions\u201d &#8211; global leaders in niche markets &#8211; are distributed across regions and operate with similar innovation dynamics regardless of location. The conversation challenges urban <span class=\"readmore\"><a href=\"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/hidden-champions-breaking-the-urban-bias-in-innovation\/\">Les mer &#8230;<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":4881,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2549],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reginno"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/UiS_logo_Podcast_The_RegInno_440x300-e1776086360552.png?fit=440%2C300&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7OAJ5-1h4","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3397,"url":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/the-role-of-universities-in-regional-innovation-policies-and-practices\/","url_meta":{"origin":4902,"position":0},"title":"The Role of Universities in Regional Innovation Policies and Practices","author":"NettOp UiS","date":"23\/12\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"This episode discusses the processes through which universities contribute to the policymaking in terms of regional development and innovation. Drawing on a comparative case study involving University of Aveiro (Portugal), University of Twente (Netherlands) and Autonomous University of Barcelona (Spain), Liliana Fonseca analyzes how universities interact with regional government authorities\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Universities, innovation and regions&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Universities, innovation and regions","link":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/category\/universities-innovation-and-regions\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Runin440x300px.png?fit=440%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3406,"url":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/towards-an-engaged-university-in-the-periphery-innovation-regional-development-and-institutional-change\/","url_meta":{"origin":4902,"position":1},"title":"Towards an engaged university in the periphery: Innovation, regional development and institutional change","author":"NettOp UiS","date":"04\/01\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This episode discusses the transformation of entrepreneurial universities into engaged universities in peripheral, less-developed regions. Focusing on the cases of two universities from RUNIN network, the University of Aveiro in Portugal and the University of Twente in the Netherlands, Ridvan Cinar examines the hurdles that universities face in this transformation\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Universities, innovation and regions&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Universities, innovation and regions","link":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/category\/universities-innovation-and-regions\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Runin440x300px.png?fit=440%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3402,"url":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/it-takes-two-sides-to-build-a-bridge-universities-as-institutional-entrepreneurs-in-knowledge-based-regional-development\/","url_meta":{"origin":4902,"position":2},"title":"It takes two sides to build a bridge: universities as institutional entrepreneurs in knowledge-based regional development","author":"NettOp UiS","date":"04\/01\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This episode discusses how regional stakeholders come together to boost knowledge-based innovation and economic development in their regions and the preconditions for increasing the bridge-building role of universities in this regard. Lisa Nieth focuses on the alignment of expectations from regional stakeholders and the corresponding capabilities of universities, and the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Universities, innovation and regions&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Universities, innovation and regions","link":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/category\/universities-innovation-and-regions\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Runin440x300px.png?fit=440%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3383,"url":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/from-the-triple-to-the-quadruple-helix-of-innovation-theory-and-practice\/","url_meta":{"origin":4902,"position":3},"title":"From the Triple to the Quadruple Helix of Innovation: Theory and Practice","author":"NettOp UiS","date":"13\/12\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"This episode discusses the conditions under which quadruple helix model of regional innovation functions better. Huong Nguyen analyzes how the triple helix model covering the relations among university, industry and government actors has evolved into the quadruple helix with the increasing significance of civil society and other civil stakeholders for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Universities, innovation and regions&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Universities, innovation and regions","link":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/category\/universities-innovation-and-regions\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Runin440x300px.png?fit=440%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3404,"url":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/microfoundations-of-academics-networks-initiation-evolution-and-context\/","url_meta":{"origin":4902,"position":4},"title":"Microfoundations of Academics&#8217; Networks: Initiation, Evolution and Context","author":"NettOp UiS","date":"04\/01\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This episode discusses how networks of individual academics affect the geography of their interactions for innovation and regional development. Rhoda Ahoba Sam analyzes the networks of academics seen as the key actors for knowledge transfer processes. Drawing on interviews from three different regions within RUNIN network - Lincoln (UK), Stavanger\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Universities, innovation and regions&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Universities, innovation and regions","link":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/category\/universities-innovation-and-regions\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Runin440x300px.png?fit=440%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3369,"url":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/the-role-of-university-industry-interaction-in-regional-development\/","url_meta":{"origin":4902,"position":5},"title":"The role of university-industry interaction in regional development","author":"NettOp UiS","date":"02\/12\/2022","format":false,"excerpt":"This episode discusses the impact that a university has on the industrial development of a region. Drawing on the case of Aalborg University in Denmark, Gerwin Evers analyzes how the university and local industry research collaboration has contributed to regional growth. He throws the spotlight on the interdependent channels of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Universities, innovation and regions&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Universities, innovation and regions","link":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/category\/universities-innovation-and-regions\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/Runin440x300px.png?fit=440%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4902","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4902"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4902\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4903,"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4902\/revisions\/4903"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4881"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nettop.guru\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}