Big Technology Podcast The Declining Half-Life Of Social Media — With Eugene Wei
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Jul 19, 2023 Eugene Wei, a tech analyst with a rich background at Meta, Amazon, and Hulu, dives into the shifting landscape of social media. He discusses TikTok's innovative algorithm and the challenges of platforms like Threads amidst user fatigue. Wei explores the transient nature of social media and its dual role as a connector and a source of toxicity. He also touches on the absence of a 'super app' in the U.S. and reflects on leadership changes at major tech firms, shedding light on the future of AR and VR technologies.
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Algorithm Nuance
- TikTok's algorithm success stems from its ability to process clear positive and negative signals from short-form videos.
- Other platforms struggle to replicate this due to different content formats and interfaces.
Signal Clarity
- Social media algorithms need both positive and negative signals to understand user preferences.
- A clear signal is crucial for effective algorithmic judgments, as seen with TikTok's success.
Social Graphs vs. Algorithms
- Western social media initially relied on social graphs, which proved imperfect for interest matching.
- TikTok's algorithm offered a solution by focusing on content affinity over social connections.