Reddit Founder Says Building Social Media Apps Is ‘Not Cool Anymore’
wired ·
At the inaugural WIRED World Fair, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian declared that building social media apps is no longer appealing due to a compromised internet landscape. He predicts that the future of user-generated content will shift toward improved group chat formats rather than traditional platforms. Ohanian expressed concern over the rise of AI-generated content and bots, aligning with the 'Dead Internet Theory' which suggests online spaces are increasingly designed for agents rather than humans. Although his venture firm Seven Seven Six focuses on sports communities as an antidote to digital manipulation, he acknowledged Reddit's financial value in training large language models. However, he also noted that this commercialization has led to misinformation and negatively impacted referral traffic for the platform. While supporting measures like mandatory logins to verify humanity, Ohanian remains cautiously optimistic about AI's potential for medical breakthroughs despite its risks.
wired