Abstract
<jats:p>The chapter examines how frugal innovation has been combined with knowledge management in settings where financial, infrastructural, institutional and human resource conditions are acute. It underlines the idea that the force of impactful innovation may be motivated by expertise instead of resources. It corroborates on Knowledge-based View (KBV) of the firm and stresses the value of tacit skills, local knowledge, collective experience and general-access internet-based spaces and platforms. The chapter demonstrates the development of the frugal innovation over time using a conceptual and case-based approach and discusses creation, sharing and application of knowledge in low-resource environments. It presents a model that describes how knowledge input, knowledge management processes and collaborative effort in stakeholders are key to attaining socially relevant innovation at minimum cost. It illustrates through global and Indian case studies including Aravind Eye Care, M-Pesa, SELCO Solar, and Goonj, how radically different knowledge intensive frugal innovation is able to provide cost and scalable solutions to pertinent problems in a variety of arenas including healthcare, finance, energy, and grassroots development. A subsequent theoretical contribution of the chapter is to lend plausibility to KBV as an extension of frugal innovation, furnishing practical resources and policy insights on how to nurture and develop inclusive knowledge environments. This study suggested the direction of future research opportunities, among others, on AI-enabled knowledge integration, cross-sectoral relations, and longitudinal evaluations as possible ways to sustain and spread frugal innovation.</jats:p>