February 23, 2023
According to a new tweet from Twitter CEO Elon Musk, the company is planning to open source its algorithm as soon as next week.
“Prepare to be disappointed at first when our algorithm is made open source next week, but it will improve rapidly!” he said in a tweet responding to a user who said they’d be “truly impressed” if that happened.
Musk’s tweet quickly went viral and ignited a debate among users, with many cheering Musk’s decision to open source the algorithm. Some users also expressed concern about the platform’s lack of profitability, which Musk alluded to in his tweet. The idea of making Twitter’s algorithm open source isn’t new; Musk has been pushing for it since before he bought the company for $44 billion last October.
“I’m worried about de facto bias in “the Twitter algorithm” having a major effect on public discourse. How do we know what’s really happening?” Musk tweeted in March. “Open source is the way to go to solve both trust and efficacy,” Musk said in another tweet.”I’m worried about de facto bias in “the Twitter algorithm” having a major effect on public discourse. How do we know what’s really happening?” Musk tweeted in March. “Open source is the way to go to solve both trust and efficacy,” Musk said in another tweet.
Aside from the algorithm, some users suggested that Twitter’s moderation policies be revised. One user suggested holding an open town hall meeting with liberal and conservative users to discuss moderation policies that cater to both perspectives. With increased political interest in how social platforms’ content recommendations work, open sourcing Twitter’s algorithm could help keep lawmakers and regulators at bay.
The sources for this piece include an article in TheRegister.
