The tech industry changes every year with new inventions and ideas coming out in an effort to change our lives forever. While many of these products and services make the grade, others do not. These are the biggest tech failures of 2022.
1. Google Stadium
It was the most awaited launch of 2019; Google Stadia was set to revolutionize gaming by giving players access to games anytime, anywhere, without any downloads or installs. But it soon became clear that the results didn’t match the hype. By December 2022, Google Stadia had turned out to be one of the biggest tech flops of recent times and certainly of 2022.
In October 2022, Google announced that it would be discontinuing its Stadia cloud gaming service and refunding all players for all Google and Stadia Store hardware, content, and add-on purchases. And players are not expected to return the products even after receiving the refund.
The issue with Google Stadia came up in several areas. One was the need for its greater stability and reliability. The streaming service often experienced significant lag, crashes, and disconnections, making it virtually unusable for many users.
Another issue was the limited selection of games available on the platform. While some notable titles were available at launch, most of the games were more minor indie titles. This made it difficult for people to get excited about the service as a viable alternative to traditional console gaming.
Overall, the launch of Google Stadia disappointed a lot of gamers and tech enthusiasts. Despite its lofty ambitions, the service failed to live up to expectations and eventually flopped in 2022.
2. Elon Musk’s Twitter Takeover
In October 2022, tech mogul Elon Musk took control of Twitter. But instead of ushering in a new era of prosperity and efficiency, his reign has been plagued by missteps and controversies.
First, Musk offered a paid verification option on the platform, which immediately exposed people impersonating celebrities and large companies. His reign also saw the reinstatement of Kanye “Ye” West and other controversial accounts, leading to other issues with content moderation.
In another bizarre turn of events, Musk fired half of Twitter’s employees, only to realize he needed them to keep operations running. To further complicate matters, he introduced a new, fancier version of Twitter 2.0 that required employees to pledge their loyalty. This resulted in the laying off of more engineers and other key employees.
This Twitter acquisition has proved to be an ongoing disaster and a cautionary tale for anyone considering a similar venture. Musk’s ambitious plan will likely be remembered as one of the biggest tech failures of 2022.
3. Bankruptcy Filings and Crashes in the Crypto Sector
It was a wild year in the cryptocurrency market in 2022, with bankruptcies, crashes, and market volatility as the themes of the year. The first and biggest blow to the cryptocurrency market was when the Terra Luna/USD crashed, wiping out almost all of its value. The coin was touted by many analysts as a rising asset class, but when it collapsed, it took many other digital assets with it, causing widespread volatility in the market.
The second major crypto flop of 2022 is the FTX bankruptcy. FTX was one of the largest exchanges for digital currencies and derivatives. Nevertheless, a sudden liquidity crisis meant that the exchange could no longer provide the services it was known for. This led to a sell-off of assets and a drastic reduction in trading volumes.
Similarly, one of the most popular lending platforms for crypto, Celsius, suddenly closed its doors, leaving customers without their funds and questioning their security. BlockFi and Three Arrows Capital (3AC) also faced bankruptcy due to fund mismanagement.
Like Celsius, BlockFi closed its doors because it could not meet its obligations to customers who lent their money through the platform. 3AC made several large bets on specific cryptocurrencies that ultimately did not pan out, causing them huge losses from which they were unable to recover.
Additionally, the NFT market crashed in 2022, although it boomed throughout 2021, with investors flocking to buy artwork and collectibles in digital form. And when it crashed, it wiped out millions of dollars worth of NFT investments across the board.