‘Plans for Corona app a shambles’ ran the headline in the Algemeen Dagblad, a Dutch newspaper, after the now infamous ‘Appathon’ event organized in mid-April by the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport to test and improve apps designed combat the spread of corona. In other media, too, there was nothing but harsh criticism of this experimental attempt to come up with a lockdown exit strategy. The unanimous verdict was that it was a total failure. But why exactly? Viewed from the perspective of innovation, the way in which the government tackled this complex issue was a sign of a real change, a sign of hope for all major challenges faced by society today.