You clearly misread what I wrote. I was referring to the “no-knead” method which was popularized starting in the late 90s to mid-00s, and built upon by Robertson. No one is claiming kneading is new; it’s ancient.

We can debate over what constitutes “significant” innovation. I’m not saying anyone is going to come out and be like “hey turns out you don’t need flour OR water either!”. Clearly the foundation of bread is super simple and those basic principles are still unchanged. But I don’t agree with the author’s implication that it’s total hubris to be attempting to innovate and move the art forward.

Only very recently in history have we had certain technology available to us that has allowed people to exert super precise control over the baking environment (ambient temperatures, steam, etc.) and ingredients (flour blends, grinds, breeds of grain, strains of yeast). Bakers have and continue to tinker endlessly with these variables and the result is that the bread keeps getting better. Sure, not everyone cares about these things. For most people bread is bread. But it’s pretty cool (as a bread nerd anyway) to see someone like Chad Robertson put in many years of tinkering and experimentation and come up with a unique recipe that really influenced a whole new generation of bakers. Perhaps no single part of his technique or the resulting bread is 100% new or original, but he managed to compose several characteristics together in a way that was new and exciting.