On Friday, Twitter made portions of the computer code that determines how the social media platform recommends content available to the public. This gave users and programmers access to the algorithm’s inner workings and the chance to propose changes.
In a blog entry, the business claimed that it had uploaded the code to two repositories on the code-sharing website Github. The recommendations system, which determines which tweets users see on their timeline, is one of the many components of Twitter whose source code is included in these files.
Elon Musk, the company’s billionaire owner, requested the action and has previously stated that code transparency would increase customer confidence and speed up product improvements.
Additionally, it helps to allay widespread worries raised by users and legislators who are increasingly questioning social media platforms about how algorithms choose the material that users see.
On Friday, Musk wrote that outside parties ought to be able to examine the open-sourced code and “determine, with reasonable accuracy, what will probably be shown to users.”
He tweeted, “There will undoubtedly be many embarrassing issues found, but we will quickly solve them.
Additionally, Musk stated that every 24 to 48 hours, Twitter will update its recommendation algorithm based on user ideas.
Musk and a few Twitter staff members conducted a session on Spaces, Twitter’s audio chat feature, on Friday. Musk invited users to bring suggestions and queries about the platform’s code.
One individual questioned the logic behind Twitter’s code that seemed to categorize users as Democrats or Republicans. An employee of Twitter replied that the feature was outdated and not necessary for the platform’s recommendation engine, and that the business was seeking to get rid of it.
The business claimed that the code underlying Twitter’s ad recommendations is not present in the repositories on Github.
Additionally, it stated that it had omitted any code that might jeopardize user security or privacy or weaken efforts to stop child sexual abuse content from appearing on the platform.
The news also comes after portions of Twitter’s source code were exposed on Github; last week, Twitter asked Github to remove the code.
Twitter enquired of the US. According to a legal document, the Github account that had posted the leaked code was ordered to give “all identifying information” by the District Court for the Northern District of California.
