Chouinard was neither the inventor nor the sole proponent of clean climbing, merely one of the most influential. Before it swept the US climbing community clean climbing already had a substantial history in Europe, especially in the UK. A UK climber, Royal Robbins, for example, manufactured artificial chocks several years before Chouinard and also pioneered clean climbing techniques in the US.

That being said, he did have a huge impact, and it's probably for the better that he retained personal control of the company for as long as he did.