One of the vital roles played by CVC in innovation is to make new technologies accessible to corporations, which they cannot develop in-house due to a number of capacities. Hence, investing in a start-ups working in and around some disruptive technologies, like artificial intelligence, block chain, or biotechnology, would position them at the eye of these industries. That's in stark contrast with the traditional R&D, which basically focuses on increment progress. Through CVC, corporates get to know of such innovations much earlier and then guide them to better serve the corporate objectives.
Alphabet's venture arm, GV, formerly Google Ventures, invested in start-ups in life sciences as well as AI, where Google itself is very active. These investments give Alphabet advance access to the disruptive technologies, keeping them ahead of the peers.