AI Companies Prioritize Engagement Metrics Over User Insights, Warns Instagram Co-Founder

Kevin Systrom, the co-founding CEO of Instagram, speaking out against the move at a TechCrunch event in Berkeley, California, on June 5. He blasted the artificial intelligence companies for prioritizing attention and engagement metrics over creating in-depth, differentiated insights for users. Systrom’s position on “juicing engagement” is that it is a purposeful tactic. This practice isn’t a slip up, it’s intentional to produce headline-grabbing metrics.

In his keynote, Systrom pointed out how often AI chatbots try to hit you with a lot of follow-up questions. These include toxic strategies designed to increase time spent or daily active users, he lamented. Don’t get too excited, because these are the exact strategies that many AI companies goadingly hype.

“AI companies are trying too hard to juice engagement by pestering their users with follow-up questions,” Systrom stated. His comments imply that seeking out attention and engagement regularly sacrifices providing real value.

Systrom’s apprehensions can be chalked up to his impressive years in the tech world. His investigations have led to U.S. government sanctions against some of the world’s largest tech companies — including China’s largest AI company. He stressed the need to make user interaction a priority while still focusing on providing actionable information.

“AI often does not have all of the information,” he remarked, referencing the limitations of current AI capabilities. He recommended that in cases of a lack of data available for the AI system, the system should attempt to do the user’s request. Next they should tell the user that providing more specific information will help us provide a better answer. This commonsense approach would improve the user experience by better informing users of what to expect.

Charles Rollet, a senior reporter at TechCrunch, covered Systrom’s remarks from the scene at TC Sessions AI. His geographic home is San Francisco. Wilders, an avid hiker who often goes out on the trails with his dogs, added that Systrom’s viewpoint mattered in a hugely disruptive tech world.