Indeed you could. And sometimes you'd be right; other times you'd be dead wrong. If you could be right even half the time, you'd be rich as all get out. Which is why I would suggest: Don't make overreaching bold predictions (or become an investor).
I'm right way more than half the time. How do I get rich predicting $newTech will fail?
Short the stock :)
Go for it flukus! Easy peasy! If what you say is true, you can probably become a millionaire before the decade is out!
and be ready to pay for as long as you're wrong.
Being right about half of failures isn't worth anything. You can't short SnapChat Spectacles.
You need to be right about half of successes, which is much harder for a raging pessimist like OP.