Hasnain says:

This was a great read - learnt a bit more about recommendation algorithms!

“Recommender systems are extremely well studied in computer science, and relatively simple to understand, but public comprehension of how they work is poor. That has led to these algorithms being viewed as magic, demonized, or mythologized. (I hope to play a small role in changing this through my ongoing project on algorithmic amplification and society.) TikTok’s recommender system is not its secret: rather, it’s the design, which, of course, isn’t secret at all. More generally, in AI applications, the sophistication of the algorithm is rarely the limiting factor. The quality of the design, the data, and the people that make up the system all tend to matter more.

Despite TikTok’s design innovations being well known, other apps have trouble copying them because they were originally designed for a very different experience, and they are locked into it due to their users’ and creators’ preferences. This is a classic example of the innovator’s dilemma: Clay Christensen’s argument that incumbents tend to be held back by their own success—a lesson that’s been largely forgotten as “disruption” turned into a buzzword. As changes in technology make new user experiences possible, TikTok may one day be the struggling incumbent.”

Posted on 2023-03-23T14:34:33+0000