Hypothesis
A hypothesis is a conjecture or belief that you hope is true and is specific enough to be refuted or supported by an experiment.
When developing products, teams generate hypotheses about the underlying assumptions that need to be true for their ideas to succeed. Good teams are explicit about these hypotheses and test them before investing time in building.
What Makes a Good Hypothesis
A testable hypothesis clearly defines:
- The change being tested
- The expected impact
- Who will be impacted
- By how much
- After how long
Without these components, hypotheses are too vague to test effectively.
Why Do Hypotheses Matter?
Many teams build products as if their assumptions were facts. Rarely does a team get all their hypotheses right from the start. By making hypotheses explicit and testing them through experiments, teams reduce the risk of building something nobody wants.
Good hypotheses make implicit assumptions visible, enabling teams to test and learn before committing significant resources.
Learn more: The 5 Components of a Good Hypothesis
Related terms:
- Assumption Testing
- Experiments
- Discovery
- Iteration
Last Updated: October 25, 2025