proof of concept

noun

plural proofs of concept

: something that demonstrates the feasibility of a concept (such as a product idea or a business plan)

Even if it succeeds, the $5.9 billion reactor will be just a proof of concept, with commercial fusion power still decades away.

—Corey S. Powell

Malware and virus-writing used to be something hobbyist hackers did for fun, as proofs of concept. Not anymore.

—Mat Honan

—often hyphenated when used before another noun

No invention is worth anything without the proof-of-concept prototype.

—Shintaro Osano

… proof-of-concept experiments funded with public money and years away from any commercial application, were sponsored by university biology departments.

—Andrew Curry

Examples of proof of concept in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For Mory and his team, the ISC victory was proof of concept that Japanese whisky could succeed in international markets. —Chris Perugini, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025

The Aladdin is proof of concept, Molzer said, of yes, things can be done. —Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 26 May 2025

These proof of concept short stories have emerged as something akin to the dizzying deals made for spec scripts decades ago. —Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline, 12 May 2025

Distributed by Flawless/XYZ Films in partnership with Falling Forward Films, this is a proof of concept as the world’s first theatrical full-length feature to use AI for immersive dubbing from a company called Flawless. —Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 11 May 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1967, in the meaning defined above