In 2006, Lego decided to include advanced users in the creation of the next generation of Mindstorm.

Lego picked 4 advanced users of Lego Mindstorm from an online community to work together with Lego on developing new features. The advanced users had knowledge and insights which Lego themselves did not have in-house. The users became part of the Lego innovation team, but gave up their IP rights to Lego and did not receive a salary.

The new version, Mindstorm NXT, has a microprocessor that can be programmed using a PC or a Mac. Users can create a program and download it to their Mindstorm robots, giving the robot a life of its own, autonomous from the computer.

Lego Mindstorm received two awards within the first few months after launch.

Source: Prahalad & Krishnan (2009)