I'm convinced we're on the brink of a new era in social media.

I'm convinced we're on the brink of a new era in social media. But before we can get into what might come next, we have to understand how we got here. And I think that boils down to an event that took place nine years ago. I'm referring to when TikTok introduced the gold standard of algorithms back in 2016 with the FYP or for you page for the luddites out there. And then Twitter, Facebook and Instagram followed suit with very similar formulas. Very quickly, endless feeds of suggestive content became the norm. So when I think about the timeline of social media from the very beginning to the present day, I see it in two major time periods. Before FYP and after FYP, with that specific algorithm introduction being the point at which we opened Pandora's box. Moving from a follower based chronological feed to a discovery based algorithmic feed. But I sense we're approaching or have already rounded the corner on the next phase based on three significant signals I'm observing over and over. The first is algorithm hangovers. People are becoming more aware of the negative side effects that accompany the endless scroll and are demanding better guardrails, stronger legislation and personal boundaries. These are acts of resistance that hint at a growing frustration. The second is a return to our roots, IE community. Newer features like IG's close friends list and increased activity on private communities like Slack and Discord indicate that people want the connection that comes with social media without the pesky addiction. And the third is just an absolute breaking point with the instability of most platforms. There are more content creators, entrepreneurs and business owners than ever before whose livelihood depends on being able to reach their followers. And the more impossible that becomes, the more successful alternatives like Substack, Patreon, Kajabi and even YouTube become. So what comes next and what will define the new era of social media? I have some theories that involve custom algorithms and the rise of antiquated features, but I wanna hear yours. What is on the horizon?