4 ms·

Recommendation for the EU, please force social media platforms to offer support for custom feed algorithms/plugins. If they don't offer them, ban them from the

Recommendation for the EU, please force social media platforms to offer support for custom feed algorithms/plugins. If they don't offer them, ban them from the EU market. Long term, once we figure out how to generate feeds that are aren't socially corrosive dumpster fires. Mandate platforms default to using one of a set of approved models (maybe we need a recommendation engine benchmark that scores social divisiveness).

dinkumthinkum 2y ago
Wouldn't it be much better for the European Union to do what it would prefer which is to simply jail anyone that produces any content that doesn't follow correct opinions?
gavmor 2y ago
> force social media platforms to offer support for custom feed algorithms This sort of legislature could bankrupt a startup—and, by extension, discouragement investment—by driving them to pursue a technical achievement that's out of their league, and for potentially no reward.
- grumpy-de-sre 2y ago
  Social stability is far more valuable than any social media business. But yes regulatory capture will need to be managed.
  - gavmor 2y ago
    > Social stability is far more valuable than any social media business In an ever-changing universe, how can we have social stability without innovation?
    - grumpy-de-sre 2y ago
      Stable systems are not static, they are just sufficiently damped that they don't oscillate uncontrollably [1]. 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damping https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damping
      - gavmor 2y ago
        I've a rudimentary familiarity with control systems, yes. Glad we're on the way same page! I'm not satisfied with your response, but I'm losing my grasp on the analogy. What are we dampening? Inertia, no? Imparted by the environment, and/or our own (fundamentally, inevitably) inaccurate thrust vectors? It's a metaphor, so I guess we can only argue about the level of abstraction at which to apply it. I'm certainly glad I don't need to mutate and grow new internal organs just to cross the street, but I can be grateful for the mutation and growth of an ability to synthesize Vitamin D which allowed my ancestors to cross glaciers—two activities which are, arguably, helpful in maintaining homeostasis.
  - Nasrudith 2y ago
    I think you might want to read up on the history of Japan post Warring States, to learn what happens when you priveledge "social stability" over innovation.
visarga 2y ago
You don’t need legal solutions for something that technology can fix. Agents can gather, filter, rank, and display information in a way that works for you. Gatekeepers control both the information and the interface, but agents take that control back—especially local agents, which offer privacy and freedom from restrictive oversight. LLMs can adapt endlessly in how they present information. There’s no need to disconnect entirely or remain at the mercy of tech companies. I suspect advertising is headed for a rough patch soon, as agents will slice through spam and ads.

dinkumthinkum 2y ago

Wouldn't it be much better for the European Union to do what it would prefer which is to simply jail anyone that produces any content that doesn't follow correct opinions?

gavmor 2y ago

> force social media platforms to offer support for custom feed algorithms This sort of legislature could bankrupt a startup—and, by extension, discouragement investment—by driving them to pursue a technical achievement that's out of their league, and for potentially no reward.

grumpy-de-sre 2y ago
Social stability is far more valuable than any social media business. But yes regulatory capture will need to be managed.
- gavmor 2y ago
  > Social stability is far more valuable than any social media business In an ever-changing universe, how can we have social stability without innovation?
  - grumpy-de-sre 2y ago
    Stable systems are not static, they are just sufficiently damped that they don't oscillate uncontrollably [1]. 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damping https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damping
    - gavmor 2y ago
      I've a rudimentary familiarity with control systems, yes. Glad we're on the way same page! I'm not satisfied with your response, but I'm losing my grasp on the analogy. What are we dampening? Inertia, no? Imparted by the environment, and/or our own (fundamentally, inevitably) inaccurate thrust vectors? It's a metaphor, so I guess we can only argue about the level of abstraction at which to apply it. I'm certainly glad I don't need to mutate and grow new internal organs just to cross the street, but I can be grateful for the mutation and growth of an ability to synthesize Vitamin D which allowed my ancestors to cross glaciers—two activities which are, arguably, helpful in maintaining homeostasis.
- Nasrudith 2y ago
  I think you might want to read up on the history of Japan post Warring States, to learn what happens when you priveledge "social stability" over innovation.

visarga 2y ago

You don’t need legal solutions for something that technology can fix. Agents can gather, filter, rank, and display information in a way that works for you. Gatekeepers control both the information and the interface, but agents take that control back—especially local agents, which offer privacy and freedom from restrictive oversight. LLMs can adapt endlessly in how they present information. There’s no need to disconnect entirely or remain at the mercy of tech companies. I suspect advertising is headed for a rough patch soon, as agents will slice through spam and ads.