Threads users in the US can now ask Dear Algo to control their feeds

Social media feeds have been evolving over the years, turning into a mix of content shared by friends, random people, and brands. What exactly gets shown in those feeds is based on mysterious algorithms with complicated rules, which rarely offer a direct way to control them. That’s about to change, at least in one social media app.

Threads extends its Dear Algo to the United States

Meta announced it’s rolling out Dear Algo on Threads for users in the US. Dear Algo is the AI-powered feature that gives users more control over what they see on their feeds.

To use the feature, users need to start a public post on Threads with “Dear Algo” and continue with whatever they want from their feed. The requests work both for seeing more or limiting the amount of content on a certain topic, and can be deleted before they expire.

Requests addressed to the Threads algorithm adjust the feed for three days, which Meta says allows users to stay connected to the most current conversations. As the Dear Algo posts are public, users can also repost someone else's request, which would apply it to their own feed preferences. 

Expanding soon

Meta first started talking about Dear Algo in December when it launched an initial test in New Zealand and Australia, which later extended to the UK and is now rolling out in the US. The company says it hopes to introduce it in more countries soon.

Dear Algo is a rather unique feature among social media apps. While users can customize their experiences by searching and following certain hashtags and creators, adding topics to the feed is not a common feature. Usually, changing your feed requires tfocusingon certain content for some time, and getting rid of topics you’re not interested in is often impossible.

Nice touch

What I like the most about the feature is that it feels natural. In fact, when it launched it in December, Meta said it was based on things people were posting on Threads. Typing a request to the feed in a mostly text-based social network feels like a much better user experience than any type of settings menu could ever offer.

Try Noble Mobile for only $10

Get unlimited talk, text, & data on the T-Mobile 5G Network plus earn cash back for data you don’t use.

Buy at Noble Moblie