If technology keeps getting smarter, why do launches still miss and users still get stuck?  Why do innovations on WordPress, just like innovations on any other platform, need time to gain usage? Because tech isn’t the bottleneck, people are. Not because people are irrational, but because people are real. They have habits, constraints, and languages, and they make mistakes. People always make mistakes. 

This is why I believe that the speed of innovation and its impact are grossly overestimated by some trend watchers and tech optimists. The theory is often beautiful, but practice is a completely different story.

The doorbell anecdote

My husband is what you call an ‘early adopter.’ He is always the first to bring the newest gadgets into the house. Our house is a showcase of smart devices: curtains that open and close electrically, automated lights, a self-learning thermostat, and now a doorbell that can do more than just ring. He is consistently optimistic about the possibilities, while I am naturally skeptical.

This weekend, my skepticism reached a new peak when our brand-new, hypermodern doorbell kept ringing for half an hour, without any clear cause. In such a moment of irritation, all enthusiasm for ‘smart’ solutions disappears, and I frustratedly exclaim that I would prefer an old-fashioned, simple doorbell. 

Technology works, but people don’t

Technological progress is, of course, fantastic on paper. My husband often states that ‘this can’t go wrong, because it is designed in such a way that it will always work.’ He promises me it’ll make our lives easier, faster, and more efficient. My husband, who has a very sharp mind, understands the theory and the potential of all this technology. He understands the algorithms and the functionalities. But theory and practice are far apart.

Take voice search, for example. In theory, it should be a revolution, but in practice, the system often misunderstands you, especially if you speak Dutch. The result? I, and many others with me, never use voice search (yet). 

New technologies always have to deal with ‘teething problems.’ This is inevitable because the entire chain from development to implementation is carried out by people. And where people work, mistakes are made. My husband then tries to argue that ‘the technology should be able to do this,’ but the reality is that the human error in the chain breaks the promise of the technology.

Implementation: the unpredictable delay

As an investor in startups, I have now learned an iron law: everything takes longer than the ‘whizkids’ lead you to believe. In the mind of a technician, a process can run lightning fast and seamlessly. But the acceptance, integration, and actual functioning in the rest of society is a slow, viscous process.

That smart doorbell is not only produced somewhere in an advanced factory; it also has to be installed by a human. This installer will undoubtedly have the necessary technical knowledge, but they are also a human who can make mistakes. One incorrectly set parameter, one loose contact, and the entire ‘smart’ system fails spectacularly. The time between innovation and actual, flawless adoption is always significantly longer than initially estimated. My husband always underestimates this timeframe (and perhaps I sometimes overestimate it).

What about WordPress?

Across WordPress, innovation seems to be all about AI. AI features are arriving everywhere: “write with AI” in the editor, image and alt-text generators, SEO suggestion copilots, and even support bots in dashboards. The promise is real, but the first iterations will break in predictable, human ways.

Technicians and power users interact with AI like a precision tool: clean prompts, structured workflows, and clear expectations. Everyday users won’t. They’ll paste mixed-language drafts, expect on-brand copy on the first try, and unknowingly publish hallucinated links, inaccessible components, or bloated markup that slows the site. That’s not the failure of the idea; it’s the messy middle of implementation.

Adoption and behavior change: it all just takes time. If you treat AI as an assistant, not autopilot, it can deliver real wins without bringing the house down. And eventually, of course, after the messy middle, AI will help all the WordPress users. 

Conclusion of being married to the early adopter

The essence is that being an ‘early adopter,’ contrary to what marketing wants us to believe, is anything but relaxed. It often means you are the guinea pig for immature technology and the inevitable human errors in implementation. And, as I experienced again this weekend, being married to an early adopter is no less so. The endlessly ringing doorbell is a loud reminder of the inevitable friction between man and machine.