Instagram is a photo-sharing app that has surpassed 800 million daily active users. In contrast, rival Snapchat has 173 million. Instagram allows its users to manipulate their photos with different filters and share them with friends and the greater Instagram community with hashtags and location tags. One thing that makes the platform so engaging for its active users is the personalized experience Instagram creates using artificial intelligence and big data. 

With more than 70 million new photos posted to the app each day, Instagram has endless data logged from the ways users engage with posts. Instagram uses machine learning to populate its Discover tab, an area in the app where users can explore content on the platform. According to Dan Toffey, Head of Community Lab, Instagram dives into vast amounts of data to understand how people use the platform and to create a curated experience for users. For example, Instagram is able to adjust a user’s feed based on likes, comments, follows, search preferences, and more. The app continuously learns from user behavior and adapts over time.

Questions for Discussion

1. Describe Instagram’s process for populating content on the Discover page

2. Why is it important for Instagram to create a tailored app experience for each user

3. In what other ways could Instagram use big data to improve its platform