When Kraftwerk first debuted in Japan in 1978, their style of music, featuring synthesizers and drum machines prominently in the mix, was described in the Japanese press as 'technopop.' Similarly, when Yellow Magic Orchestra came to the U.S. in 1980 to appear on the TV program Soul Train, they were described by Rolling Stone magazine as 'technopop.' More recent Japanese bands such as きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ, Perfume and 平沢進 are also commonly classified in Japan as 'technopop.'

The music itself often bears quite a bit of similarity to the New Wave synthpop of 1980's British bands such as Depeche Mode and New Order and post-2000 electropop artists such as Ke$ha and The Ting Tings, but outside Japan, the word 'technopop' is less common than 'synthpop' or 'electropop.' Some English writers have tried to distinguish the genres, by claiming that technopop is lo-fi, colder or more artificial sounding than 'synthpop' or 'electropop,' but that is not the case in Japan.

In Germany, Kraftwerk's music was initally known as electronic body music, and in England, they were grouped together with bands like Tangerine Dream as part of the Krautrock genre.

In the early 1980's, Detroit musiciain Juan Atkins (Cybotron, Model 500) began releasing songs using synthesizers to create spacey sound effects (heard in italo disco), combined with deep bass riffs (heard in electro), complex drum machine parts (heard in freestyle), and a danceable four on the floor beat (heard in house). In 1988, Atkins and his friends Derrick May and Kevin Saunderson released a compilation album, Techno! the New Dance Sound of Detroit, establishing a new genre. 'Techno' often has less accent on the vocals than 'technopop,' and a greater emphasis on squelchy sound effects, driving bass and drum machine patterns.