How To Validate That New Tech Solves A Real Problem

InnovationHow To Validate That New Tech Solves A Real ProblemByExpert Panel®,Forbes Councils Member.for Forbes Technology CouncilCOUNCIL POSTExpertise from Forbes Councils members, operated under license. Opinions expressed are those of the author. | Membership (fee-based)Jun 08, 2026, 01:15pm EDT gettyIn the rush to innovate, it’s easy for a tech company to become enamored with a new technology tool or service the team is building and lose sight of the people the product is meant to serve. New offerings and features may be technically impressive, but if they don’t address a meaningful need, adoption and long-term success will be difficult to achieve.The most effective innovations are rooted in a deep understanding of customer pain points, industry challenges and real-world workflows. Validating that a product meets those criteria requires disciplined research, testing and feedback throughout the development process. Below, members of Forbes Technology Council share ways companies can ensure the technologies they build are solving genuine problems.Put A Human In The Loop Before You BuildPut a human in the loop before you build anything. Before we wrote a single line of code, I put a live person on our website to talk to every visitor. Those conversations told us more about the real problem than months of user research ever could, because people are honest when they think they’re just asking a question, not participating in a study. - Suyash Karn, Interact AIDefine The Specific Problem Your Solution AddressesTechnology is a means to an end, but enterprise teams keep inverting that because building the capability feels concrete, while defining the problem feels abstract. Refuse to fund a build until someone can name the specific role, workflow or business outcome that’s worse off without it or what that team is currently duct-taping together that needs a real solution. - Bruno Billy, APGARForbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs,...