Beg to differ: 12 cogs in the rear enabled 1x. And 1x was a complete game changer in the mountain bike world, because it allowed suspension designs that plainly weren’t possible. 1x has been so successful that I literally cannot think of a single modern quality mountain bike frame that even accepts a front derailleur. (Yes, I am sure you can find one if you google long enough, but take my word for it: on the knobbly tire side with flat bars, 2x is dead.)
The 12th sprocket was crucial for the success of 1x, because you finally had enough range. With 11 cogs in the rear you are definitely missing a gear at the top or bottom end since the max native range is about 420 %. Shimano’s reaction for years seemed to have been shrugging until frames were incompatible with their 2x offerings.
1x has also become very popular in parts of the drop bar community. We can argue how big the market is or that some people will never switch. I just like SRAM’s and Campag’s approach better: if you want 2x, we have got you covered. If you prefer 1x, please walk this way and browse our 1x products. That’s how it should be.
I expect that once we get to 13 gears, a lot of people will no longer have the need for a second chain ring and a front derailleur. Because you know what shifts better than a Shimano front derailleur? No front derailleur. 
Not really. Shimano has sold wheels and hubs for decades, for example. My first mountain bike that I got something like 27 years for my 14th birthday had Shimano hubs. In fact, all of my mountain bikes so far have had Shimano hubs. None of them ever failed or required service. Shops around me sell and team mates ride Shimano wheels. I have no idea whether they are any good, I’m don’t want to judge what I don’t know, but also here, I don’t see Shimano pushing the envelope.
And with time, things like power meters have become table stakes. Power meters will soon be just a standard feature with (higher-end) drive trains. SRAM saw that coming in over 10 years ago and bought Quarq in 2011. Now they offer power meters for all configurations, but two (their 43/30 Force and Red gravel crankset).
Another big miss is software: Shimano’s evolution of Panasonic’s platform was comically bad and bricked devices in some countries.
Two things: I didn’t claim that it was only SRAM doing the innovating, but rather that Shimano is usually last to adopt something important. Rotor and Campag are ahead of SRAM as well in that they both offer 13-speed drive trains. I have heard mixed things about Rotor’s drive train, but if you like Campag’s shift logic, their Erkar groupset seems to be great. The biggest “criticism” is that it is missing a higher-end and electronic option, but IMHO that will come if demand is there.
And if SRAM made strategic purchases or investments in other companies to fill gaps in its line-up, I think that’s forward-thinking, too. Quarq was purchased about a decade before Panasonic’s power meter business.
Overall, it just seems that Shimano is left reacting to trends after watching for years rather than being ahead of the curve. Am I wrong?
