Tech Explained: Here’s a simplified explanation of the latest technology update around Tech Explained: Communities growing with AI in Simple Termsand what it means for users..
If you watch one clip on how to make carrot cake, you’ll likely be recommended another—maybe dozens. Showing people more of what they already like leads to further plays and purchases. But when people see the same content over and over, they start to lose interest.
TikTok takes a different approach, which uses people’s behaviours and how they interact with the platform to reveal what they like and what they might like, spark curiosity and deliver an optimal experience. “The For You feed is a specially curated space where you can learn new topics and discover creators you don’t follow,” says Francis Stones, TikTok’s head of global brand safety and responsible media. “It does that by using AI technologies, learning in real time what you enjoy to help predict what else you may like, finding content that’s right for you.”
User controls and education play a crucial role in striking the right balance between familiarity and surprise. TikTok offers tips about how to make the For You feed (known by many of the TikTok community as the For You page, or #fyp) more relevant, such as by favouriting content or following creators, marking unwanted content as “not interested”, filtering keywords and topics or muting accounts. Features like Manage Topics allow further customisation, letting users adjust how often they see content in categories including dance, sport, and food and drinks. TikTok recently announced an additional category coming in the future, which will let users control how much AI-generated content they’d like to see.