Does the Gartner Hype Cycle Invalidate Itself? By: Patrick Crouch

What is the Hype Cycle? From Floor Management’s website: “The Gartner Hype Cycle is a device that lays out the path that technologies generally take, from their initial introduction into the market until their eventual maturation into useful components of broader solutions.” Becomes

But what is it for? According to Gartner, “Clients use Hype Cycles to get educated about the promise of an emerging technology within the context of their industry and individual appetite for risk.” But do they? Personally, couldn’t find a single example of tech-oriented company using the Hype Cycle to determine spending or strategy. So who’s using it? Marketers. The internet’s version of this

So what is it really for? The Hype Cycle, far from being any kind of strategic tool for tech companies, is more a list of buzzwords. Words on the left, spiked side of the Hype Curve are meaningless and unrefined buzzwords used by salesmen to sell products to small businesses trying to capitalize on tech but don’t know any better Words on the right side are broadly-defined industry-accepted buzzwords Used to attract young, innovative tech talent to old, boring companies Used in startup pitches to attract new investment to old ideas Examples: “Big Data” and “Virtual Reality”

My take on the Hype Cycle The Gartner Hype Curve: The Patrick Crouch Hype Line: Useless Buzzwords Useful Buzzwords Start End

Does the Hype Cycle Invalidate Itself? The Hype Cycle doesn’t so much invalidate itself Though some people believe that new tech gets a bad rep from being on the Hype Curve The Hype Cycle concept itself is invalid Many technologies from previous years dropped off because the concepts were wrong or flawed, not necessarily due to being “hype” Most technological advances come from the combination or misuse of a variety of technologies, not from one technology being researched Hype curve assumes linear, incremental technological development when actual tech development can follow completely nonlinear patterns.

Conclusion Don’t believe the hype! The Gartner Hype Cycle is more of a scapegoat for failing/unrealized technical promise than a useful tool Thanks for reading!