Talks to Watch

HP Offers 'That Cloud Thing Everyone Is Talking About'

899K views · Jul 29, 2012 · 2:10 · 0 HN recommenders · 7 mentions · discussed 2018–2026

A 2012 Onion News Network satire in which HP announces a push into cloud computing and insists it knows what the cloud is.

Why Hacker News points people here: Used as a joke whenever companies chase tech buzzwords, from cloud to AI.

What Hacker News said 7

Jokefenwick67Jul 2018

“I'm very often reminded of this video when people use tech buzzwords a lot”

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I'm very often reminded of this video when people use tech buzzwords a lot: "HP offers 'that cloud thing everyone is talking about'" this video

in “No Joke: The Onion Faces Layoffs by Univision, Says Report” · view on HN
JokecsoursNov 2022

“This was bitterly funny when I worked for HP in 2012.”

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> HP executives were slow to grasp the huge shift toward cloud computing in the early 2010s. 2012 - this video We Have App This was bitterly funny when I worked for HP in 2012. --- No mention of "disruptive innovation" in these comments or the article. Interesting.

in “Companies like HP must split to survive, is like the evolution of new species” · view on HN
JokephiljohnMay 2024

“is still relevant 11 years later”

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It was ever thus - remember when everything was about "The Cloud"? TheOnion satirical news report about HP adopting "That cloud thing that everyone is talking about" is still relevant 11 years later: this video

in “The Washington Post Tells Staff It's Pivoting to AI” · view on HN
JokenicbouJun 2024

“The Onion had it right a while ago”

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My cynical take is that we accidentally started a self-sustained frenzy. C-levels hear that AI is literal magic, and that you can't afford to miss that boat. Nobody wants to be caught not doing AI, so all the KPIs, OKRs and bonuses have AI tied to them. Everyone slaps AI on stuff as fast as they can, further accelerating the trend. The Onion had it right a while ago: this video

in “Object to your information being used for AI at Meta” · view on HN
JoketdeckFeb 2025

“In case anyone hasn't seen the Onion video”

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In case anyone hasn't seen the Onion video: this video HP Offers 'That Cloud Thing Everyone Is Talking About'

in “Humane (Or Red Flags to Spot for Next Time)” · view on HN
JokeLoganDarkMar 2025

“The Onion also made some pretty good cloud parodies back in 2012”

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The Onion also made some pretty good cloud parodies back in 2012: this video Old animation though I wouldn't necessarily expect to only have been 10 years ago, and 10 years ago I wouldn't expect to be scolded for not using the cloud.

in “Music labels will regret coming for the Internet Archive, sound historian says” · view on HN
JokeBluecobraJan 2026

“Don’t forget about cloud-something!”

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Don’t forget about cloud-something! Related: HP Offers 'That Cloud Thing Everyone Is Talking About’ this video

in “Stories removed from the Hacker News Front Page, updated in real time” · view on HN