early adopter

[ur-lee uh-dop-ter]

noun

1. a person who uses a new product or technology before it becomes widely known or used.

early adopter

noun

1. one of the first people or organizations to make use of a new technology

Word History and Origins

Origin of early adopter¹

First recorded in 1845–50

Example Sentences

James Strawn wasn’t an AI early adopter, and the father of two teenagers doesn’t want to sacrifice his personal life for a job.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

"I've always been an early adopter… and in the past year have started using ChatGPT for just about everything. It's become a second assistant."

Read more on BBC

Santa Barbara, an early adopter, launched its safe parking program decades ago in an effort to connect homeless people to services and housing.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

An early adopter of Technicolor, it boasted a lighting budget nearly double that of its rival, “Gone With the Wind,” yet the latter gobbled nearly every Academy Award and poached “Oz’s” director, Victor Fleming, who swapped projects halfway through and won an Oscar for his vision of Sherman’s March instead of the Yellow Brick Road.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Michigan, long a hotbed of anti-government militia activity, was an early adopter of strategies to fight domestic extremism, making it a target of conservative pundits who accuse the state of criminalizing right-wing organizing.

Read more on Salon