- Instagram gives you access to the algorithm
- Right now it’s all about Reels
- You can also share what you learn about your interests.
Some describe social media algorithms as black boxes, dark rooms that have extensive control over what you see but offer virtually no insight into how their dark magic works. Instagram is changing that equation today by opening up just a small part of its impenetrable programming and letting users, with the help of artificial intelligence, take the lead.
Instagram has announced the “new way to control your Instagram experience.” in a blog post on Wednesday (December 10), explaining that the change will allow users to view and manage their Reels algorithm.
Reels is the longest video content and is similar to TikTok, another social media platform with a powerful and inscrutable algorithm.
Don’t worry: if you see the new Algorithm login icon (two lines of hearts), don’t look at the code. Instead, Instagram uses artificial intelligence in ways it can’t explain, showing you what it understands about your interests. What you watch the most or longest, what you like, what you share, and even what you scroll through quickly shape the Reels algorithm. This detail, your interests, now appears in the summary list of topics above.
This is where things get interesting; Now you can play with your algorithm and input which topics you want to see more of and which you’d rather remove from your feed.
Instagram promises: “Your roles will reflect your decisions.”
Perhaps even more surprisingly, Instagram lets you share your algorithm, or at least the interests you like, in a Story post.
When I first heard this I started laughing because there are a lot of memes about how dangerous it is if, for example, your spouse or partner sees what your algorithm reveals about you.
Obviously, access to the Reels algorithm is just the beginning. Instagram promised that the feature will be available “soon” to Discover and other places in the app. We assume that at some point you will gain access to your entire Instagram algorithm.
Why now?
After years of criticism that Meta and Instagram weren’t doing enough to protect their users (especially teenagers) from harmful content, Instagram is taking a much more aggressive approach to policing content. Most of these were about parental controls. But it is the first big step towards real control in the hands of the users.
Many people wonder why some things show up in their feeds and other topics don’t. This may lift the veil of confusion, but it also shows how Instagram tracks us. People’s Reels feeds should become much more organized and perhaps ultimately look more secure.
I’m curious about the impact this might have on advertising, since we all know that a personal conversation with a friend or loved one about a possible trip to Paris almost immediately leads to videos of Paris in our feed (it’s not chemistry; the friend probably searched for Paris on Instagram or Facebook, and since you’re logged in, your feeds are infected with Viva La France). Now maybe you can go to your algorithm center and remove this parisian subject before it causes a complete feed infection.
Instagram probably also does this to bring people back to Instagram. There are some signs of this. Generation Alpha, the next target group, is leaving social networks. Maybe changes like this (real control over the algorithms) can help bring them back.
This can also put pressure on other social media companies such as e.g
According to Instagram, Reel’s algorithm monitoring is rolling out today in the US and soon globally (for English-speaking markets).
Give it a try and let us know your thoughts (and the algorithms’ cool discoveries) in the comments below.