Or...
like breeding?
Consider the role of the elite cultivar in plant breeding. Consider the open source model of finding fit mating candidates in the wild. Consider the challenges of mating tools and requirements?
Invention and innovation are not the same thing. Inventions are birthed. Innovations are bred. Not all mating is breeding (targeted characteristics).
Some breeding is discovery. Back to the submarine analogy: at the end of WWII, the US Navy captured the Japanese super-submarines that were to have launched bombers off the US coasts. They were amazed at the size and technologies. For the first time, they realized a submarine was not just a ship hunter but could be a weapons platform. They needed better power and the right weapons. They realized they had nuclear expertise and they had captured the German rocket team. From their nuclear expertise, the German's rocket expertise, and the Japanese submarine, the modern submarine fleet was bred.