The term vaporware refers to a product which companies publicly announce but they fail to deliver to their customers. The cryptocurrency and blockchain industry uses the term vaporware to describe projects that present ambitious plans but fail to develop operational products or achieve their planned schedules.
The technology sector originated the term as a way to describe companies which used product announcements to create public interest while their actual product remained incomplete. During market booms the cryptocurrency industry saw more vaporware usage because investors became interested in new tokens and platforms that emerged in the competitive market.
Crypto vaporware projects depend mostly on their marketing activities instead of actual product development work. The company creates impressive whitepapers and websites which enable them to make bold commitments about their impending use cases and partnerships and performance achievements.
Development work experiences a gradual decrease until it totally halts while updates become less informative and scheduled features experience multiple delays before they vanish completely. The project team sometimes disappears which results in the token holders receiving worthless tokens.
The term vaporware exists as a separate concept from fraudulent activities. Some teams experience technical difficulties because they fail to correctly estimate the complexity of their projects but they also experience financial difficulties. The absence of product delivery creates trust issues which result in financial losses for investors who based their expectations on future commitments instead of present-day products.
The system enables readers to assess investment risk through projects that depend mainly on their upcoming declarations. The concept shows that actual development evaluation requires assessment of real achievements together with functional software and open communication channels instead of relying on promotional activities or extended commitments which might turn out to be false.