{"id":123836,"date":"2026-04-22T17:43:06","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T17:43:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2026\/04\/22\/stop-begging-big-tech-to-fix-your-social-media-experience-you-can-do-it-yourself\/"},"modified":"2026-04-22T17:44:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T17:44:09","slug":"stop-begging-big-tech-to-fix-your-social-media-experience-you-can-do-it-yourself","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2026\/04\/22\/stop-begging-big-tech-to-fix-your-social-media-experience-you-can-do-it-yourself\/","title":{"rendered":"Stop Begging Big Tech To Fix Your Social Media Experience. You Can Do It Yourself."},"content":{"rendered":"

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from the vibe-code-your-social-experience<\/i> dept<\/h3>\n

Disclaimer: <\/strong>This publish talks about Bluesky and an providing from Bluesky and <\/em>I am on the Bluesky board<\/em><\/a>. Take every part I say with no matter measurement grains of salt you are feeling is suitable.<\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve written a couple of occasions now about how I feel that AI instruments, used fastidiously and thoughtfully, characterize our greatest probability at taking back control over the open web<\/a>. I do know this isn’t a well-liked opinion with many Techdirt readers, however I\u2019m hoping a few of you’ll learn by means of this to attempt to perceive and interact with the factors I\u2019m making right here. I really do consider that if used properly and appropriately, these instruments can serve to place energy again into the palms of customers, quite than large centralized firms who’re extra serious about exploiting your consideration.<\/p>\n

Over the previous couple of weeks I\u2019ve been enjoying round with an AI-powered instrument that Bluesky has launched (a lot to the chagrin of many customers) to a comparatively small group of early beta testers. I feel the adverse response to the product announcement is comprehensible, given the overall mistrust of all AI instruments, however it\u2019s actually value inspecting what this instrument is and what it may possibly allow, together with actually empowering individuals to take again management over their very own social expertise. It actually offers you a path to routing round Bluesky\u2019s personal design options if you happen to don\u2019t like them.<\/p>\n

Sure, lots of AI is overhyped rubbish being shoved at individuals who don\u2019t need it \u2014 however that doesn\u2019t imply the underlying instruments can\u2019t be helpful when utilized fastidiously by those that select to make use of the instruments appropriately.<\/p>\n

It means not outsourcing your mind to the instrument, however quite utilizing it the best way any expert individual automates some facet of labor that they do. I\u2019ve sanded and restained the flooring of my home, and whereas I may have executed the entire thing by hand with a stack of sandpaper, it was useful to lease a ground sander from an area ironmongery store, discover ways to use it correctly, after which use it in order that I may end the job in a day quite than weeks. I view AI instruments the identical method. In case you discover ways to use them correctly, as an assistive instrument quite than a substitute to your mind, they can assist you accomplish helpful issues.<\/p>\n

Let me give an instance: a few weeks in the past, legislation professor Blake Reid wrote a brief thread on Bluesky about how he wanted to take a break from social media, as a result of he fearful that it was consuming up an excessive amount of of his time and he was higher off simply stopping chilly turkey, to keep away from getting sucked into unproductive discussions that push him to (as he put it) \u201crecover from my skis\u201d in partaking in conversations the place he\u2019s tempted to weigh in regardless of not having a lot experience (a standard factor on social media). It\u2019s a worthwhile thread<\/a>.<\/p>\n

However in that thread he talked about that he was hopeful that possibly some day expertise itself may assist him use social media in a more healthy method, to dial again how a lot time he spent on it, and get him centered on the extra productive and helpful discussions (which he admits additionally occur commonly on Bluesky).<\/p>\n

What was amusing to me was that the one motive I noticed that publish by Reid was as a result of I\u2019ve been beta testing a brand new instrument that\u2026 kinda does that. When he wrote that thread, I used to be truly on trip, climbing within the Nationwide Parks in Utah, and largely offline. However within the evenings, I might examine in, and quite than sorting by means of every part I missed on social media that day, I had a instrument simply present me issues that I might discover helpful that I may need missed.<\/p>\n

However utilizing an AI instrument, I had constructed a completely personalised information aggregator, which had entry to my Bluesky account, Techdirt\u2019s RSS feed, and the information that I had been out all day and needed not only a abstract of what information is perhaps attention-grabbing to me because the editor of Techdirt, but in addition what individuals on Bluesky have been saying about it. Right here\u2019s a screenshot of what my first try at this appears like:<\/p>\n

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The instrument that permit me do that is a complicated model of Attie<\/a>, which I additionally acknowledge is extraordinarily controversial amongst customers on Bluesky, a lot of whom vocally have expressed their hatred of the very idea of it<\/a> when it was introduced final month. However, my essential curiosity is in determining to empower customers who wish to take management over their very own social expertise, and this looks as if a transparent instance of that. I\u2019ll word that this model of Attie has not but rolled out to a lot of the beta testers (I consider some have entry to it \u2014 however that is one small advantage of being on the board).<\/p>\n

Actually, I feel the best way Bluesky introduced Attie could have executed it an injustice, positioning it as a type of AI-powered feed generator. There are a number of different feed generator instruments for Bluesky on the market, a lot of that are actually implausible. For some time now I\u2019ve used each Graze.social<\/a> and Surf.social<\/a> to make AI-powered feeds (which by no means appeared to generate a lot controversy).<\/p>\n

However producing feeds alone isn\u2019t all that attention-grabbing. With the extra superior model of Attie, I can take rather more management over my complete social expertise. The truth that with a single immediate I may construct that personalised aggregator (based mostly not simply by myself feed, however Techdirt\u2019s RSS) is one thing extra highly effective, together with the truth that the instrument is aware of to summarize a complete days\u2019 value of posts, as a result of I\u2019m attempting to see in a look if there\u2019s something related for Techdirt and I\u2019d been offline your entire day.<\/p>\n

Slightly than simply letting a single firm (on this case Bluesky) outline my complete expertise for me, I can vibe-code my social expertise. I can inform it not simply the varieties of content material I wish to see, however how I wish to see it. And for what motive. And the way a lot (or how little) content material to point out me. And with what context round it. It\u2019s all based mostly on what I expressly need. Not what any firm thinks I would like.<\/p>\n

And I hold experimenting with different variations of this as properly. In a single check, I had it additionally attempt to summarize tales and inform me why it thought I\u2019d discover them helpful for Techdirt:<\/p>\n

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On this case it not solely discovered a narrative that’s attention-grabbing to me, however it steered a number of sources for me to examine it, even noting (for instance) that Professor Eric Goldman\u2019s weblog publish is \u201cthe definitive weblog publish\u201d for my protection (it\u2019s not flawed).<\/p>\n

I’m going again to the piece I wrote a short time again concerning the type of learned helplessness of social media users<\/a>. We\u2019ve had twenty years of billionaires deciding precisely how they needed to intermediate your social expertise. How your feed appears. What sort of algorithm you\u2019ll see. What kinds of content material will likely be put in your feed. They received to deal with engagement maxxing. You simply needed to take care of it.<\/p>\n

In such a world, the one factor customers felt they might do in response was to yell. They might yell on the CEOs of those platforms. Or on the authorities, telling them to yell on the CEOs of those platforms.<\/p>\n

However with an AI instrument that explores an open social ecosystem, you don\u2019t have to yell at a CEO or a regulator. You possibly can simply inform the instrument what you need, what you don\u2019t need, the way you need (or don\u2019t need) to see it, and what context could be helpful. It places you in management.<\/p>\n

And sure, typically it makes errors. It may well advocate a narrative I\u2019m not serious about. However, then I can simply inform it that such and such story isn\u2019t helpful and why\u2026 and it’ll replace the system for me.<\/p>\n

As soon as once more, I perceive that some individuals hate any and all makes use of of AI. And I\u2019m not suggesting it’s a must to run out and use the instruments your self. You do you. However displaying concrete use instances the place these instruments truly ship extra consumer company \u2014 extra management over your on-line atmosphere, quite than deferring to the whims of any explicit firm \u2014 issues.<\/p>\n

The bigger level right here isn\u2019t actually about Attie particularly (certainly, anybody may construct their very own model of this because of open protocols). It\u2019s that for twenty years, customers have been skilled to consider their solely choices are to simply accept no matter a platform offers them, or yell loudly sufficient that somebody highly effective may change it. That\u2019s the discovered helplessness I wrote about earlier, and it\u2019s corrosive.<\/p>\n

Instruments like this \u2014 constructed on open protocols, not locked inside a company walled backyard \u2014 characterize a special path. One the place you don\u2019t petition a billionaire for a greater feed algorithm. You don\u2019t petition the federal government to attempt to put closing dates on social media. You simply construct the expertise you need. You inform it to make you a greater interface that matches what you need. You inform it you don\u2019t wish to spend that a lot time. That\u2019s what \u201cprotocols, not platforms\u201d truly appears like in follow, helped alongside by agentic instruments, and it\u2019s why I feel this issues properly past whether or not any explicit AI instrument is nice or not.<\/p>\n

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\tFiled Below: ai<\/a>, attie<\/a>, custmization<\/a>, decentralization<\/a>, vibe coding<\/a>
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Corporations: bluesky<\/a>\n<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n