Tech Winners And Losers Of 2024: The Year In True Innovation And Total Product Flops
Source: ZDNet, Jason Perlow, Senior Contributing Writer
Photo: Meta Ray-Ban Smart Glasses (June Wan/ZDNET)
AI flourished, Arm chips dominated, and open source thrived. Meanwhile, Elon Musk gets credit for two of the biggest losers, and Apple makes it onto both the naughty and nice lists.
The year 2024 delivered all the drama technology fans could want: AI dominance, chip wars, smart devices that were anything but, and a social media implosion that’s already a case study in corporate mismanagement. From monumental wins to jaw-dropping failures, here’s the definitive breakdown of the year’s tech highs and lows.
Losers
1. X (formerly Twitter): A masterclass in self-destruction
Elon Musk spent 2024 doubling down on the chaos that turned X into a punchline. Advertisers fled after baffling policy shifts, verified checkmarks became meaningless, and users abandoned ship for Bluesky and Mastodon in droves. Engagement plummeted, and what was once a cultural institution became a meme of its former self. Musk might still call it “the town square,” but in 2024, X was more like the local landfill.
2. Amazon: Innovation takes a coffee break
Amazon’s five-day return-to-office mandate alienated employees, sparked accusations of “quiet firing,” and triggered a mass exodus of talent. Workers who couldn’t — or wouldn’t — move closer to offices were forced out, and with them went years of expertise and innovation. This was the HR equivalent of smashing a robot with a sledgehammer for a company obsessed with efficiency. Quiet quitting? More like loud mismanagement.
3. Cybertruck: Trapezoids of doom
Tesla’s Cybertruck finally hit the road in 2024 — and immediately rolled into a ditch. Recalls for defective inverters, cameras that didn’t work, and windshield wipers that couldn’t handle drizzle made the truck a laughingstock. Its resale value tanked, and its polarizing design still looked like a failed geometry assignment. Sure, it turns heads, but only because people can’t believe it exists.
4. Apple Vision Pro: $3,500 worth of ‘why?’
Apple’s Vision Pro wowed in demos and dazzled on paper, but in practice, it was a solution in search of a problem. At $3,500, it was more curiosity than game-changer, with no killer app to justify the cost. Apple fans drooled, but most consumers shrugged. A technological marvel? Yes. A must-have device? Not even close.
5. Intel: Relic of a bygone era
In 2024, Intel continued to drift further into irrelevance. Its “AI PCs” barely moved the needle, and the 13th and 14th Gen Core processors — repackaged versions of last year’s chips — left consumers unimpressed. Meanwhile, Arm-based chips like Apple’s M4 and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite set new benchmarks for performance and efficiency. Intel used to lead the charge; now it’s trailing behind, yelling at the clouds.
6. CrowdStrike: Trust misplaced
CrowdStrike had one job: keep systems secure. Instead, it botched a software update that caused a global IT outage, affecting millions of Windows devices and denting its reputation. For a company built on trust, this colossal failure had customers second-guessing their investments. Cybersecurity giant? More like cybersecurity headache.
7. AI wearables: The dumbest ‘smart’ gadgets
The Rabbit R1 and Humane AI Pin proved that just because you can make something “smart” doesn’t mean you should. The Rabbit R1 was clunky, impractical, and destined for the junk drawer, while the Humane AI Pin overheated, lacked features, and came with a ridiculous price tag. AI wearables promised innovation but delivered irrelevance.
8. Sonos: The sound of failure
Sonos hit a new low with a buggy app update that frustrated customers and delayed hardware launches. Employee warnings about the rollout were ignored, leading to a $30 million fiasco, a 25% stock drop, and layoffs. For a company synonymous with high-quality sound, 2024 was a tone-deaf performance.
Winners
1. AI tools and platforms: Finally living up to the hype
2024 was the year AI started earning its buzz. Google’s rebranding of Bard to Gemini came with the release of Gemma 2 models, which gave developers powerful tools and helped Google claw its way back into the AI race. OpenAI’s GPT series remained the gold standard, tackling everything from legal briefs to code fixes, while Adobe’s Firefly turned non-designers into creative pros. For once, the AI hype didn’t feel overblown.
2. NVIDIA: Ruler of the AI kingdom
NVIDIA dominated 2024, selling out its Blackwell chips for 2025 before the year even ended. The company raked in $35.1 billion in quarterly revenue, a 94% jump, and pocketed $19.3 billion in profit. It also launched Fugatto, an AI tool for generating and remixing audio, and kicked Intel out of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. NVIDIA didn’t just win 2024; it owned it.
3. Open source software: Proving collaboration wins
Open source thrived in 2024, with AI models like LLaMA 3, Falcon, and Gemma 2 empowering developers to build without barriers. Meanwhile, proprietary overreach backfired — HashiCorp’s restrictive Terraform license spawned the popular OpenTofu fork. And while the Open Source AI Definition (OSAID) sparked debate, it underscored open source’s growing influence. When companies closed doors, open source opened new ones.
4. Arm-based chips: The future of computing
Arm processors continued their meteoric rise, led by Apple’s M4 and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X Elite. The Mac Mini M4 made desktops portable, the M4 MacBook Pros redefined laptop performance, and the M4 iPad Pro rendered traditional laptops obsolete. Snapdragon turned Windows devices into serious contenders, leaving Intel in the dust. Arm wasn’t just the future—it was the present.
5. Bluesky: The cool kid on the block
While X imploded, Bluesky soared. Its decentralized model, sleek interface, and user-first policies made it the social media platform of choice for anyone fleeing Musk’s circus. Every time X rolled out a new policy, Bluesky gained users. By year’s end, it wasn’t just an alternative—it was the new standard.
6. Matter Protocol: Smart homes that actually work
Matter Protocol finally made smart homes functional by forcing Apple, Google, and Amazon to collaborate. Devices that couldn’t communicate before were now seamlessly integrated, making smart home setups less of a headache. It’s about time.
7. Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses: AR without the cringe
Meta surprised everyone with Ray-Ban Smart Glasses that were lightweight, stylish, and useful. Hands-free calls and subtle AR overlays made the glasses practical, not gimmicky. For once, AR tech didn’t feel embarrassing — it felt innovative.
8. iPhone 16: Stellar hardware, meh intelligence
Apple’s iPhone 16 proved you can still dominate with brute hardware force, even if your AI game is… underwhelming. The base model packed the new A18 chip, boasting a 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, and 8GB of RAM — a serious performance boost that left Android rivals scrambling. The cameras? A 48MP main shooter and improved 12MP ultra-wide lens delivered stunning photos, even if the selfies still look like you.
See you next year
As we enter 2025, the tech industry remains a volatile and unpredictable landscape. The winners will continue to push boundaries, while the losers will struggle to adapt to the rapidly changing technological landscape. One thing is certain: The future of tech is full of promise and peril, and the next year promises to be another thrilling ride.