The Gartner Hype Cycle, or hype cycle, is the name given to the life cycle of a new technology from its initial conception, whether in the lab or not, through its impact on the market, to its widespread acceptance.
The Gartner name was coined by the research and analysis firm of the same name that conducted the study and formulated its conclusions.
This cycle is divided into five phases:
- Innovation Trigger (Innovation Trigger): This is an initial stage and is identified when the technology emerges. It is usually accompanied by great excitement, enthusiasm and high expectations due to its disruptive potential.
- Peak of Inflated Expectations (PIE): The technology reaches its peak of popularity. There is a lot of talk about its potential applications and benefits and often hype about its capabilities.
- Trough of Disillusionment (Trough of Disillusionment): This is where utopian expectations begin to collide with reality. The challenges, limitations and problems associated with the technology become apparent.
- Slope of Enlightenment (Slope of Enlightenment): After overcoming the pit of disillusionment, realistic understanding of the technology begins to emerge. Organizations learn from past mistakes and begin to find more practical use cases and real benefits for the technology.
- Plateau of Productivity (Plateau of Productivity): The practical applications are understood, many of the problems are solved and best practices are established. Widespread adoption occurs at this point, and the technology becomes an integral part of the market.
This term is easy to assimilate with examples if we look at the life that the most recent disruptive technologies that have already been introduced into our lives, such as 5G, have had. At the beginning of this technology’s life some experts and popular opinion had generated such high expectations that it was believed that it would change the way we look at our lives, which does not seem to have happened, although it did improve the quality of internet browsing.
Other examples of technologies that have already gone through almost all 5 phases are blockchain, augmented reality, nanotechnology or cloud services. However, society is still assessing, or trying to glimpse from different positions of opinion and credulity, how far the Metaverse or Artificial Intelligence can take us, technologies that are constantly evolving and about which Gartner has applied its formula to find out at what point of maturity of the technology we are, in any case they are technologies that do not cease to generate technical, ethical and of course legal debates in areas of knowledge such as the protection of personal data or intellectual property and, more specifically, copyright.
The Gartner Hype Cycle not only applies to emerging technologies, but can also be used to assess the adoption and maturity of concepts, methodologies, trends or business approaches. Thus, the Gartner Hype Cycle is a useful representation for companies, investors and decision makers, as it allows them to better understand the lifecycle of an emerging technology and make informed decisions about its adoption, investment or development.
It is important to be well informed and well advised when investing in disruptive technologies as some of them may represent a great value in the future, but may involve a considerable risk, so from The Lighthouse Team we advise and accompany you providing light in the development of your business, the organization of your investment and the definition of the best legal strategy. Do not doubt that, with good experts by your side, disruptive technology will be a safe bet. Contact us.
