In addition to mechanical turk, there's also the phrase "Fake it till you make it" which is somewhat appropriate (the connotation is more like "pretend to be a success").
Ask HN: What is the term for faking automation by using human labor?
11–18 of 18 posts
Re: Ask HN: What is the term for faking automation by using human labor?
#12Unicorn.
Re: Ask HN: What is the term for faking automation by using human labor?
#13Pretty sure one term for it is "concierge MVP" where you make it look like a legit automated service, but in-fact behind the scenes it's all human labour.
Re: Ask HN: What is the term for faking automation by using human labor?
#14There are two similar but different methods.
Concierge Test is used to understand the mechanics, not user demand. Wizard of Oz (aka Mechanical Turk) is used to evaluate hypotheses.
The more detail in the post by Tristan Kromer below.
https://grasshopperherder.com/concierge-vs-wizard-of-oz-test...
Re: Ask HN: What is the term for faking automation by using human labor?
#15I think a lot of small companies does this in the beginning if the task is hard to implement and you have other critical tasks to finish first.
I never knew it had a term, fun to know "Mechanical Turk"
"Manual automation" could be another term :)
Re: Ask HN: What is the term for faking automation by using human labor?
#16I'm very certain the phrase you're looking for is "wizard of oz". That's what Eric Ries called these types of MVPs in The Lean Startup.
Re: Ask HN: What is the term for faking automation by using human labor?
#17I'm very certain the phrase you're looking for is "wizard of oz". That's what Eric Ries called these types of MVPs in The Lean Startup.
Here's a link: https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-pros-and-cons-of-Wizard-o...
'Definition of Wizard of Oz testing in Eric Ries' book "The Lean Startup": "where customers believe they are interacting with the actual product, but behind the scenes human beings are doing the work"'
Re: Ask HN: What is the term for faking automation by using human labor?
#18I'm very certain the phrase you're looking for is "wizard of oz". That's what Eric Ries called these types of MVPs in The Lean Startup.
More generally, it's a term of art in HCI research, going back to J. F. Kelley in the early 1980s.