The Biggest Technology Failures of 2016
Lumosity brain games
Ever see those TV ads for “brain-training” games that will make you smarter? A San Francisco company, Lumos Labs, aggressively marketed online quizzes and memory tests under the brand Lumosity and said users would perform better in school and even postpone dementia. This October, a team of psychologists reviewing hundreds of studies concluded that brain games don’t make you smarter. By then, Lumos had already been fined $2 million by the Federal Trade Commission for false advertising. “Lumosity preyed on consumers’ fears about age-related cognitive decline,” said the FTC. “But Lumosity simply did not have the science to back up its ads.”
Keep Reading
Most Popular
DeepMind’s cofounder: Generative AI is just a phase. What’s next is interactive AI.
“This is a profound moment in the history of technology,” says Mustafa Suleyman.
What to know about this autumn’s covid vaccines
New variants will pose a challenge, but early signs suggest the shots will still boost antibody responses.
Human-plus-AI solutions mitigate security threats
With the right human oversight, emerging technologies like artificial intelligence can help keep business and customer data secure
Next slide, please: A brief history of the corporate presentation
From million-dollar slide shows to Steve Jobs’s introduction of the iPhone, a bit of show business never hurt plain old business.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.