Objectivity in ALGOs: ALL GONE?
April 21, 2022
Objective algorithms? Nope. Four examples.
- Navigate to “How Anitta Megafans Gamed Spotify to Help Create Brazil’s First Global Chart-Topper.” The write up explains how the Spotify algos were manipulated.
- Check out the Washington Post story (paywall, gentle reader) “Internet Algospeak Is Changing Our Language in Real Time from Nips Nops to le Dollar Bean.” Change the words; fool the objective and too-smart algorithm.
- Now navigate to your favorite day trading discussion group Wall Street Bets. You can find this loose confederation at this link. You may spot some interesting humor. A few “tips” signal attempts to take advantage of a number of investing characteristics.
- Finally, pick your favorite search engine and enter the phrase search engine optimization. Scan the results.
Each of these examples signal the industrious folks who want to find, believe they have discovered, or have found ways to fiddle with objective algorithms.
Envision a world in which algorithms do more and more light and heavy lifting. Who are the winners? My thought is that it will be the clever people and their software agents. Am I looking forward to be an algo loser?
Sure, sounds like heaven. Oh, what about individuals who cannot manipulate algorithms or hire the people who can? A T shirt which says “Objectivity is ALGOne.” There’s a hoodie available. It says, “Manipulate me.”
Stephen E Arnold, April 18, 2022
Comments
-
- Subscribe to Beyond Search
Feature archive
News archive
-
