Unpacking the impact of entrepreneurial learning on business model innovation in internet startups: Mediating roles of digital capabilities

While researchers recognize the central role of business model innovation (BMI) in the success of digital startups, empirical research systematically exploring the pathways of BMI in the digital era for such startups remains scarce. This study employs the dynamic capability theory to construct a theoretical framework termed the “learning capability model” to examine the influence of entrepreneurial learning on BMI. We collected questionnaires from 386 Internet startups and utilized hierarchical regression analysis to explore the impact of digital capabilities on these startups. We first identified two different types of entrepreneurial learning: exploratory learning and exploitative learning. Subsequently, we tested for their effects on BMI. The empirical results indicate that both exploratory and exploitative learning significantly impact BMI. However, exploitative learning exerts a greater influence than exploratory learning. These tests revealed that digital sensing capabilities, digital operational capabilities, and digital resource collaboration capabilities have a partial mediating effect on the relationship between entrepreneurial learning and BMI. Among these, digital operational capabilities exert the most significant mediating effect, while digital sensing capabilities exhibit weaker mediating effects. This study contributes to our understanding of digital capabilities and provides practical insights for Internet startups.