@yabsssai "We've hidden the likes for your health" sounds better than "Apple has cut our tracking."
After 2 years, when the new metrics showed growth → the likes were returned.
Psychology of marketing.
Why did Instagram hide likes in 2019 and then return them?
The problem is not the likes.
The problem is that the entire platform is optimized around them.
A thread about what's really broken on social media: 🧵
#BuildInPublic#SocialMediaFuture
@yabsssai They were officially talking about mental health, yes.
But really?
Instagram saw engagement drop on iOS after App Tracking Transparency. A new explanation was needed for investors as to why metrics were changing.
I am building a social network where the main metric is not "screen time", but "quality of life after use".
Is it technically difficult? Yes.
Unprofitable? Maybe.
Is it necessary? Absolutely.
Now imagine a platform where:
The algorithm asks you what you want to achieve.
Shows content that helps this goal.
Rewards creators not for engagement, but for real benefits.
Says "maybe that's enough for today" instead of infinite scroll
Utopia? We'll see.