I have been working on Pinterest and Threads as of late, and the algorithm is just assuming that I am some kind of menopausal, 60-something woman. I sat down one day to scroll through on Pinterest, and all it was showing me was remedies for hot flashes and how to start planning your retirement.
Um, excuse me? I'm in my 30s!
That got me thinking about how these algorithms create these weird alternate realities for us. I get it, I pinned a few menopause memes as a joke and now the AI overlords have pegged me as Grandma. What's wild, though, is how fast these apps jump to conclusions and then double down.
The funny thing is, if you spend enough time in these bizarro algorithm worlds, you start to question yourself. Like, maybe I am going through early menopause? Should I be worried about osteoporosis? Do I need more fiber in my diet???
I remember when I planned my wedding some years ago, it never happened, btw. Pinterest simply thought I was some sort of Bridezilla incarnate and bombarded me with all things wedding-related for months on end. Even when I called it off, it continued to show me "15 Ways to Repurpose Your Wedding Dress!"
Ugh.
A lesson here, perhaps, is to take all these personalized feeds with a huge grain of salt. The AI doesn't know us; it's just making wild guesses based on a few data points. So maybe I'll just lean into my apparent second adolescence and see what other treasures the algorithm doles out next. Denture cream, anyone?
