Technology for Fools'

I’ve such mixed emotions about the celebrations surrounding April 1. I thoroughly enjoy a harmless hoax, both taking part in the crafting of one and at times, being the recipient! It can be a great way to bond with friends and coworkers, in the same sort of way it’s inoffensive fun to switch someone’s Coke with Dr. Pepper. My sense of humor only really runs dry when we use the day as an excuse for meanness. Hiding someone’s keys doesn’t make you an endearing prankster because of what day the calendar shows. The technology industry however has always had an interesting relationship with pulling the wool over people’s eyes in celebration of this time of year.

The origins of April Fools’ Day itself is actually somewhat of a mystery. We have evidence that people were celebrating it in Renaissance Europe, but the reality is it likely dates back much further. There are theories which associate it back to Roman times and the joyful spring festival of “Hilaria,” but nothing truly concrete. We do know however when Google joined the festivities, back in 2000 with their “MentalPlex” hoax marking the beginning of the company’s long established role of comic relief to kick off our April. Thus began the trend of the yearly, fun marketing pieces in disguise we’ve enjoyed over the years from the likes of Volkswagen and Burger King.

MentalPlex was, even in those relatively early days of the internet, genius. It encouraged users to stare at an image on their screen while picturing what they were attempting to search the web for. The site would eventually display amusing errors such as “Please re-think in digital” and “Weak or no signal.” It paved the way for later japes such as Google Nose, a fictitious feature allowing users to smell their search results, and them playfully hiding Waldo in various places on Google Maps in 2018. During the pandemic, the company chose to pause their April Fools shenanigans, so with any luck we’ll get to see something extra special this year to make up for it.

Other tech companies have taken notice of the opportunity to nab some notoriety here. Language learning app Duolingo back in April of 2019 chose to debut the hoax service “Duolingo Push.” This deeply tongue-in-cheek advert threatened that should you miss one of your daily language lessons, the company’s Owl mascot would pay a visit to your house. Hilarious! Autonomous driving company Waymo in the same year touted “Waymo Pet” as a feature offering our pets the freedom of calling their own self-driving car service. It was of course an elaborate joke, but it does help show there’s real thought and investment into these ideas. Although with social media now in its maturity, it has lowered the requirements for smaller companies to weigh in on the fun while seeing an actual return on the time.

The opportunity for mixing business with the humor of a fun prank doesn’t happen too often. But April 1 does afford a typically-faceless corporate entity to show itself as relatable, human, even funny and conversation worthy. For me it’s a welcome break from the typical marketing formula of targeted ads and billboards. Backlash to an ill-conceived prank is of course a threat to a brand’s image, but any good marketing carries risk. I’d liken it to slightly more risky, often interactive Super Bowl ads. Just be sure to wait until the the 2nd before you let yourself get excited about Spotify for Hamsters. I’m not sure I could live with the disappointment I’d been bamboozled over that.