Thread by @sanguit

1/n Tweetstorm on Tiktok:
What's really interesting is not Tiktok in itself, but more broadly how AI is likely to change our mental models on platforms.

One of the best places to understand TikTok is this brilliant piece by the NewYorker.
newyorker.com/magazine/2019/…

“large-scale AI models” will determine our “personalized information flows,” ... a “For You” feed, which is personalized by a machine-learning system that analyzes each video and tracks user behavior so that it can serve up a continually refined, never-ending stream of TikToks.

This is the first mental model:
TikTok as an AI-driven recommendation engine.

Let's look at a second mental model...

Mental model #2: Short-form immersive video with browse

Reference: techcrunch.com/2019/10/01/ins…

Zuckerburg either doesn't get it (unlikely) or gets it but isn't willing to admit it.

Zuck: "it’s married short-form, immersive video with browse... like the Explore Tab on Instagram, which is today primarily about feed posts and highlighting different feed posts. I kind of think about TikTok as if it were Explore for stories, and that were the whole app. "

Mental model #3: AI-as-the-tool, courtesy @a16z @conniechan

a16z.com/2018/12/03/whe…

This begins to check all the right boxes.

@a16z @conniechan "Rather than asking users to tap into a video thumbnail or click into a channel, the app’s AI algorithms decide which videos to show users. The full-screen design of TikTok allows every video to unveil both positive and negative signals from users"

@a16z @conniechan So how should we think about TikTok?

A key role performed by technology in ecosystems is decision support. Recommendation systems are decision support systems. Platforms typically recommend content and leave the final choice on consumption with the user.

@a16z @conniechan Here's what's really different about TikTok: 

AI takes over decision making - it internalizes decision making - and effectively takes the decision on behalf of the user.

@a16z @conniechan Internalizing decision support has a direct impact on design. Much of interface design is composed of decision support systems. When that gets taken away, UX will fundamentally change in the age of AI to include fewer decision support aids.

@a16z @conniechan This also has an impact on engagement and session length. 

By removing the need to constantly shift from consumption to decision, it creates a longer and more engaged chain of consumption.

@a16z @conniechan Internalizing decision making has a direct impact on the economics of ecosystem participation on platforms. If we view decisions as costs of participation, internalizing decisions increases participation, leading to higher engagement and more data, leading to stronger AI models.

@a16z @conniechan In essence, TikTok shows how platforms will work in the age of AI.

AI takes over decision making - it internalizes decision making - and effectively takes the decision on behalf of the user. 

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