Abstract
Circular ecosystems refer to complex systems, which involve heterogeneous actors that collaborate to achieve a circular system-level outcome. The concept of circular ecosystems emerged as a hot topic in managerial literature, and its relevance has been recognized. Scholars converge on identifying digital technologies as one of the main enablers of circular ecosystems. Still, there is a lack of research at the nexus between circular ecosystems and digital technologies. Our study aims to bridge this gap and shed light on the role of digital technologies in enabling circular ecosystems. To do so, we leverage the complex adaptive system lens to identify three complexity features of circular ecosystems. An exploratory empirical analysis is conducted to develop a novel research framework. Our findings unveil four typologies of circular ecosystems based on their level of complexity and digitalization. Our study has twofold implications for existing literature. First, we question the role of digital technologies as circular ecosystems enablers. We posit that digital technologies do not represent a panacea to enable circular ecosystems; rather, they are used when they are instrumental to achieve the circular system-level outcome. Second, we posit that a high level of digitalization does not necessarily lead to a high level of complexity.