  Is calendar time the true clock of innovation? By combining complexity
science with innovation economics and using vaccine datasets containing over
three million citations and eight regulatory authorisations, we discover that
calendar time and network order describe innovation progress at varying
accuracy. First, we present a method to establish a mathematical link between
technological evolution and complex networks. The result is a path of events
that narrates innovation bottlenecks. Next, we quantify the position and
proximity of documents to these innovation paths and find that research, by and
large, proceed from basic research, applied research, development, to
commercialisation. By extension, we are able to causally quantify the
participation of innovation funders. When it comes to vaccine innovation,
diffusion-oriented entities are preoccupied with basic, later-stage research;
biopharmaceuticals tend to participate in applied development activities and
clinical trials at the later-stage; while mission-oriented entities tend to
initiate early-stage research. Future innovation programs and funding
allocations would benefit from better understanding innovation orders.
