Randomised Control Trials (RCTs) have a narrow scope, restricted to basic intervention schemes. Experimental designs also convey specific biases when implemented in the real world. Despite such limitations, this method has been advertised as the gold standard to evaluate development policies, including public development policies. This paper takes a political economics angle to explore this paradox. It argues that RCT success is mostly driven by a new scientific business model based on a mix of simplicity and mathematical rigor, media and donor appeal, and financial profitability. This in turn meets current interests and preferences in the academic world and the donor community.