Scientists Created an Entire Social Network Where Every User Is a Bot, and Something Wild Happened

This is really interesting—apparently commonly-touted fixes for social media (chronological feeds, hiding social statistics, intentionally boosting diverse viewpoints, etc.) don’t prevent polarization in AI-simulated networks. Another piece of evidence for my hypothesis that it is the hyperconnectedness itself that is the core problem. A less dense social graph puts more negative pressure on anti-social viewpoints because people can’t as easily find people with whom they agree. (Polarization and the normalization of fringe viewpoints aren’t exactly the same, but they seem close.)

Aug 20, 2025 · No comments yet