As the global tech industry accelerates toward 2026, digital innovation firm Specno has issued cautions to African businesses to slow down and rethink how they build products. The company argues that the age of rapid, AI-driven development has created a dangerous illusion that speed equals success.
The company said the landscape has shifted into what leaders call the “fast-fashion era of tech,” where products are churned out quickly but often without substance, alignment, and commercial strength. Specno’s Head of Growth, Joshua Harvey warns that in this new reality, discipline and strategy will matter far more than how fast a product gets to market.
The warning is particularly relevant for Africa, where many organisations have embraced fast-build culture without the necessary guardrails. Specno notes that businesses are rushing to copy global trends, skipping validation, and deploying digital tools that fail to survive beyond their initial hype. The continent is already experiencing the repercussions: rising burn rates, crowded markets, and a growing list of abandoned apps. Harvey points out that companies are “shipping features instead of understanding behaviour,” creating products that look good at launch but fade because they lack long-term relevance and depth.
According to Specno, the companies that will thrive are those that treat product building as a deliberate craft rather than a race. Differentiation, the firm argues, will come from clarity, evidence, and strong commercial grounding, not speed. This shift is pushing organisations toward premium product consulting and disciplined strategy work. To meet this demand, Specno has expanded its Product Strategy practice to help companies validate ideas, define customer value, shape data-driven UX, guide engineering teams, and plan for sustainable growth before any code is written.
Looking ahead, Specno believes the defining question for African businesses is whether they are truly ready for 2026. The agency urges executives to interrogate their product readiness by examining customer clarity, validated demand, evidence-based decision-making, resilience in the fast-fashion tech market, and their strategy for iteration and relevance. Any gaps, it says, signal a need for deeper refinement. The company maintains that the organisations willing to embrace disciplined, intentional product thinking will be the ones that not only survive the coming wave of rapid innovation but also shape Africa’s digital future.