Dark Side TechLead

Have you ever wondered why big tech companies keep launching new features that nobody asked for, nobody needs, and nobody uses? You know, the ones that are supposed to make your life easier, but end up making it more complicated and frustrating. The ones that are hyped up as the next big thing, but turn out to be the next big flop. The ones that are called “innovations”, but are actually “imitations”.

Well, I have a theory. These features are not meant to improve user experience, but to help with promotions. They are part of a strategy called “Promotion Project”, which involves creating artificial problems and then offering half-baked solutions. The goal is to generate buzz, attract attention, and boost ego, without actually solving any real problems or adding any real value.

Some features, like those already in graveyard Google Plus on YouTube, Meta Portal and etc fit into this type of projects.

Let me give you a more recent example. Recently, Microsoft announced a new feature for Bing called “Deep Search”. It is supposed to provide more relevant and comprehensive answers to complex queries, using the power of GPT-4, a state-of-the-art AI language model. Sounds impressive, right? Well, not really. Here’s why:

• First of all, how often do you use Bing? Be honest. If you’re like most people, you probably use Google for most of your searches, and only use Bing when you accidentally click on the wrong icon or when you’re forced to by some Microsoft product. Bing has been struggling to compete with Google for years, and has a market share of less than 5%. So, adding a fancy niche feature to a product that nobody uses doesn’t make it any more attractive or useful.
• Second, how often do you have complex queries that require deep search? Again, be honest. If you’re like most people, you probably use search engines for simple and straightforward queries, such as “weather”, “news”, “recipes”, “sports”, etc. And for these queries, Google already does a pretty good job of providing relevant and concise answers. So, adding a complex feature to a product that nobody needs is like adding a rocket engine to a bicycle. It doesn’t make it any more efficient or practical.
• Third, how well does deep search actually work? Well, it is very slow in the first place. It turns out that deep search is not very reliable, accurate, or consistent. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes it provides helpful answers, sometimes it provides irrelevant or misleading ones. Sometimes it understands the query, sometimes it misunderstands it. And sometimes it just crashes or freezes. So, adding a buggy feature to a product that nobody trusts is like adding a ticking bomb to a car. It doesn’t make it any more safe or secure.

So, what’s the point of promotion project? By launching a new feature that sounds impressive and futuristic, employees hope to create some hype, attract some attention, and boost some ego. They hope to show off their capabilities, challenge their competitors, and impress their investors. They hope to make some headlines, get some clicks, and generate some revenue. They don’t really care about improving user experience, solving real problems, or adding real value.

But why do big tech companies resort to promotion projects? Why don’t they focus on solving real problems and improving user experience? Well, there are two main reasons:

• One, solving real problems is hard. Especially for mature products that are already optimized, the marginal cost of improvement is high. It takes a lot of time, money, and effort to make a significant difference. And it also involves a lot of risk, uncertainty, and failure. Big tech companies are not willing to take these risks, face these uncertainties, or admit these failures. They prefer to play it safe, stick to the status quo, and avoid any changes that might disrupt their existing business models or customer bases.
• Two, solving real problems is boring. Especially for big tech companies that have been around for a long time, the novelty and excitement of innovation has worn off. They have become complacent, arrogant, and self-satisfied. They have lost their passion, curiosity, and creativity. They prefer to have fun, show off, and entertain themselves. They enjoy creating artificial problems and then offering half-baked solutions. They enjoy playing with toys, gadgets, and gimmicks. They enjoy making noise, spectacle, and drama.

This is why big tech companies waste time and money on useless features. This is why they create promotion projects instead of solving real problems. And this is why they leave space for startups.

Startups are the opposite of big tech companies. They are small, agile, and flexible. They are humble, hungry, and ambitious. They are passionate, curious, and creative. They don’t care about promotions, they care about solutions. They don’t create artificial problems, they solve real ones. They don’t offer half-baked solutions, they offer value propositions. They don’t make noise, spectacle, and drama, they make impact, change, and progress.

Startups are the ones who challenge the status quo, disrupt the market, and create the future. Startups are the ones who improve user experience, solve real problems, and add real value. Startups are the ones who innovate, not imitate.

So, the next time you see a big tech company launching a new feature that nobody asked for, nobody needs, and nobody uses, don’t be fooled by the promotion project. Don’t be impressed by the hype, don’t be attracted by the attention, and don’t be boosted by the ego. Instead, look for the startups that are solving real problems, improving user experience, and adding real value. Look for the innovators, not the imitators. Look for the solutions, not the promotions.

Last but no least, should you be part of a promotion project? Why not, for promotion project that is too big to fail, it’s a perfect project for promotion as it was designed for. Go for it!