Companies expect more innovation

Commercial companies plan to lead the charge in technology innovation for a long time to come.

"We've been through a tough economy, but that hasn't stopped innovation," said Carol Bartz, who serves as chairman, chief executive officer and president of Autodesk Inc. "Most of us have the idea that there's innovation around the corner that is going to change things."

Bartz was on a panel this morning with 10 other company executives who discussed technologies poised for the same kind of rapid expansion that made home computers, and later the Internet, ubiquitous parts of life.

The panel discussion, moderated by CNN journalist Lou Dobbs, was part of the Business Software Alliance's Global Tech Summit, in Washington, D.C. The executives discussed wireless networking, security technologies and the changing global workforce during the two-hour discussion.

David Krall, president and CEO of Avid Technology Inc., said Moore's Law — which states that computers double in power every 18 months — continues to form a foundation for each successive spurt of invention.

"Every time you peel back the onion, there's a whole new layer of opportunity," he said.

The broad spread of the Internet has made it the "killer platform" that inventors are just beginning to tap into, said Bruce Chizen, president and CEO at Adobe Systems Inc.

George Samenuk, chairman and CEO of Network Associates Inc., said wireless communications soon will be the next Internet-like bubble.

"We're entering a new stage of innovation, and that's with wireless devices," he said. "Our kids will not know wired computers like we know them today."