How this channel uses emergence Across the captured material, emergence describes the way a current set of capabilities eventually unlocks an entirely new set of capabilities — the idea of the adjacent possible, coined by Stuart Kauffman at the Santa Fe Institute and popularized by Steven Johnson.[^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@201] [^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@211] [^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@222] [^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@233] [^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@245] Where it shows up The concept is applied to companies and new ventures: ideas, capabilities, and values emerge over time — things get proven and disproven, and the process becomes organic rather than forced.[^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@233] [^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@245] Steve Schlafman connects it to starting something new without knowing what it will become — five years later, the earlier version couldn't have predicted the outcome.[^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@119] [^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@130] He treats his own venture, Downshift, as a container for emergence: rather than a fixed, rigid company from day one, the earliest days are an organic process where ideas and opportunities surface as you move through time.[^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@166] [^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@178] [^01a0f15a-e496-7964-85ab-85bb697e4222@190] Exploring the idea further Use this entry to understand how the channel frames emergence — not as a fixed plan unfolding, but as capabilities unlocking new capabilities over time. Watch the moment where Steve explains the adjacent possible: [moment: 119] - Emergence = current capabilities unlocking an entirely new set of capabilities (the adjacent possible, via Stuart Kauffman and Steven Johnson). - In companies, ideas, values, and opportunities emerge organically — proven and disproven over time, not forced. - Early ventures can be treated as a container for emergence instead of a rigid day-one plan.