Abstract

One of the assumptions of responsible research and innovation (RRI) is the participation of multiple stakeholders in the research and development (R & D) process with the objective of better aligning the outcomes of R & D with the values, needs, and expectations of society. This chapter aims to analyse how start-ups manage stakeholders’ participation in the RRI context, considering different types of knowledge sharing. Two case studies are presented of start-ups in Brazil that develop online solutions for health and social problems. Results show that the inclusion of stakeholders happens via tacit or explicit knowledge exchange, and that firms need different structures and routines to deal with different knowledge types to fully explore the potentials of inclusiveness. We also found that the main measurement to evaluate ideas for products’ improvement is the start-ups’ internal strategy and not the quantity of requests from external partners.