How TikTok reads your mind and keeps you on its app
TikTok is one of the most popular mobile apps at the moment, containing 1 billion users on its attractive platform, as announced by the company in September of this year. But what is the secret behind its success?
The TikTok algorithm has four goals: “user value”, “long-term user value”, “creator value”, and “platform value”. That’s what TikTok Something 101 says, a document produced by TikTok’s engineering team in Beijing that found its way to The New York Times, offering new details about how the short-video app has built such an addictive product.
According to a company spokeswoman, Hilary McQuaide, who confirmed the authenticity of the document, said it was written to explain to non-technical employees how the algorithm works.
TikTok is one of the most popular mobile apps at the moment, containing 1 billion users on its attractive platform, as announced by the company in September of this year. But what is the secret behind its success?
The TikTok algorithm has four goals: “user value”, “long-term user value”, “creator value”, and “platform value”. That’s what TikTok Something 101 says, a document produced by TikTok’s engineering team in Beijing that found its way to The New York Times, offering new details about how the short-video app has built such an addictive product.
According to a company spokeswoman, Hilary McQuaide, who confirmed the authenticity of the document, said it was written to explain to non-technical employees how the algorithm works.
On the other hand, the document was delivered to the outlet by a person who was authorized to read it, but not to share it, and who delivered it on the condition of anonymity. The person in question was upset by the app’s push towards “sad” content that could lead to self-harm in people. How TikTok Reads Your Mind
Specifically, the document provides insightful insight into both the application’s mathematical core (delivering how its algorithms work) and the company’s understanding of human nature: the trend toward boredom and sensitivity to cultural patterns. , both of which help explain why it’s so hard for users to leave the app.
If you have used TikTok, you surely know how it works and how popular it is with young people, mainly. The app displays an endless stream of videos, and unlike others that aim to connect with friends, TikTok is primarily for entertainment.
In addition, it has gained ground on short videos because it makes it easier to create content in the app: it gives users background music to dance to, audio tracks to lip-sync, and more, instead of forcing them to make a video. right from the start.
However, there are also people who consume content without creating videos, and the app is surprisingly good at reading their preferences and directing them to one of their interests, be it a political sector, some tutorial or a specific celebrity.
The company has publicly shared the general lines of its recommendation system; In these, it says it considers factors including likes and comments, as well as video information like subtitles, sounds, and tags.
Outside analysts have also tried to crack its code. In fact, a recent report from The Wall Street Journal showed that TikTok relies on the amount of time people spend watching each video to drive them toward more clips that will keep them scrolling through the app. But that process can sometimes lead young viewers into dangerous traps, particularly towards content that promotes suicide or self-harm, problems that TikTok says it tries to stop by aggressively removing content that violates its terms of service.
