Deadly Autopilots and Fake Food Computers Top 2019 Tech Failures
The year's worst technologies include Boeing's fatal MCAS autopilot system and the MIT Media Lab's fraudulent food computer. These disasters highlight the dangerous consequences of prioritizing automation and buzzwords over safety and actual functionality.
Boeing's 737 Max stands out as the most catastrophic technology failure of the year after two deadly crashes expose a fatally flawed autopilot system. The MCAS software repeatedly takes control from pilots and forces the planes into nosedives, killing everyone aboard. Investigations reveal that air safety regulators blindly defer to Boeing, while pilots receive inadequate training on the automated system that ultimately dooms the flights.
The MIT Media Lab also earns a spot on the worst tech list for its heavily hyped but entirely bogus "food computer." Despite a popular TED talk and millions of views, the so-called cyber agriculture device functions as nothing more than a glorified and unreliable grow box. The project only survives by masking its basic flaws with trendy buzzwords like machine learning and climate hacking to secure ongoing attention and funding.
These notable failures underscore a recurring theme in the tech industry where aggressive automation and empty rhetoric lead to disastrous real-world consequences. Boeing suffers billions in losses while its entire 737 Max fleet remains grounded, serving as a stark warning about the limits of artificial intelligence. Meanwhile, the food computer fiasco illustrates how easily prestigious institutions can peddle non-functional products as long as they use the right vocabulary.