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TikTok CEO Shou Chew on Its Future — and What Makes Its Algorithm Different | Live at TED2023

TED

1.8M Views . 2023-04-21

TikTok CEO Shou Chew dives into how the trend-setting video app and cultural phenomenon works — from what distinguishes its algorithm and drives virality to the challenges of content moderation and digital addiction. In a wide-ranging conversation with head of TED Chris Anderson, he tells stories about the TikTok creators he loves and digs into thorny issues like data privacy and government manipulation — as well as speaking personally about his commitment to inspiring creativity and building community. If you love watching TED Talks like this one, become a TED Member to support our mission of spreading ideas: https://ted.com/membership Follow TED! Twitter: https://twitter.com/TEDTalks Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ted Facebook: https://facebook.com/TED LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ted-conferences TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tedtoks The TED Talks channel features talks, performances and original series from the world's leading thinkers and doers. Subscribe to our channel for videos on Technology, Entertainment and Design — plus science, business, global issues, the arts and more. Visit https://TED.com to get our entire library of TED Talks, transcripts, translations, personalized talk recommendations and more. Watch more: https://go.ted.com/shouchew https://youtu.be/7zC8-06198g TED's videos may be used for non-commercial purposes under a Creative Commons License, Attribution–Non Commercial–No Derivatives (or the CC BY – NC – ND 4.0 International) and in accordance with our TED Talks Usage Policy: https://www.ted.com/about/our-organization/our-policies-terms/ted-talks-usage-policy. For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), please submit a Media Request at https://media-requests.ted.com #TED #TEDTalks #tiktok

Shou Chew, CEO of TikTok, discusses the origin story of the app and the company's mission to inspire creativity and bring joy. He emphasizes the unique algorithm that recommends content based on user preferences rather than social connections.

TikTok origin story
Algorithm
Company Mission

  • Shou Chew, the CEO of TikTok, was introduced as someone who achieved a bipartisan consensus in US politics by getting both sides to agree on banning TikTok.
  • Chew explained the origin of TikTok, starting with two engineers who wanted to build a product that recommended content based on user preferences rather than their social connections. This vision ultimately led to the creation of TikTok around 5 years ago with the advent of 4G and mobile phone penetration.

Insights from the YouTube Video Text:

1. The Power of Algorithmic Discovery: How does TikTok's algorithm manage to understand user preferences so well, exceeding even the knowledge of their social network connections? This excerpt highlights the shift from a social graph-based recommendation system to one that predicts user interests through content engagement.

2. The "TikTok Effect": A Different Kind of Addiction: The text points to a unique characteristic of TikTok: its addictive nature. It describes how users can become engrossed in the platform within days, experiencing a sense of surprise and discovery that transcends their existing interests. What makes this kind of engagement different from other forms of media consumption, and what are the implications of this "add

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