Kodak: From Innovation Icon to Endangered Species

There was a time when Kodak was the Apple of its day. Founded in 1888, the company didn't just sell cameras—it revolutionized how society captured and remembered its moments. With the invention of roll film and the marketing brilliance behind the slogan “You press the button, we do the rest,” Kodak democratized photography. What had once been a complex, chemical-laden process became an everyday act, woven into the fabric of modern life. Kodak wasn’t just a camera company; it was a cultural force.

George Eastman and Thomas Edison at Eastman’s house in Rochester, New York, 1928 © Getty Images

That’s what makes its current position so striking. As reported this week by CNN, Kodak is now facing what could be the final chapter in its long history, with operations under threat and survival uncertain.

Back in the very first episode of unNatural Selection, I had the chance to speak with Steven Sasson, the Kodak engineer who invented the world’s first portable digital camera in 1975. The irony, of course, is painful. Kodak birthed the very technology that would later disrupt it. But as Steven described, the internal response to his invention was less about excitement and more about anxiety. Kodak was a juggernaut powered by film sales—a business built on consumables, printing, and the razor-and-blade model. The idea of digital photography, which offered no prints, no film, and no recurring revenue, was deeply threatening.

Steve Sassen with digital camera, 1975 © Courtesy of Kodak archive

This is a textbook example of the Innovator’s Dilemma—a scenario where market leaders, in protecting their profitable core businesses, ignore or dismiss disruptive innovations that initially appear inferior or unprofitable. Sasson’s digital camera was a prototype in a time when personal computers were rare and the internet didn’t exist. To Kodak’s leadership, it was a solution looking for a non-existent problem. Rather than reimagining its future, Kodak clung to the comfort of its present.

What followed was a slow-motion collapse. As competitors like Sony and Canon doubled down on digital, Kodak remained tethered to film, releasing digital products too late and without conviction. Corporate inertia, cultural resistance, and a lack of enlightened leadership compounded the problem. Kodak had the talent, the patents, and even the head start—but not the will to reinvent itself.

Now, nearly 50 years after Sasson’s invention, Kodak teeters on the brink. It is a sobering moment—not just for those who remember the company’s golden age, but for anyone working in innovation. Kodak’s decline is not just a story of missed opportunity; it is a cautionary tale of what happens when a company fails to evolve alongside the world it helped create.

20 July 1969: Astronaut Buzz" Aldrin faces the camera as he walks on the Moon during Apollo 11 extra vehicular activity. Taken on Kodak film.

History may soon close the shutters on Kodak for good. But if there’s one lesson worth preserving, it’s this: innovation is not just about invention—it's about adaptation. No company, no matter how iconic, is immune from extinction.