TLDR Tech / Marketing
How your phone keeps you scrolling...even when you want to stop
The features that keep people glued to social media were borrowed almost directly from the gambling industry, which spent decades refining digital slot machines through continuous experimentation on millions of players. Research identifies 4 ingredients that combine to produce a "dark flow" state, where users lose track of time and feel merged with the screen. These are isolated solo use, endless auto-loading content, rapid scrolling that removes friction, and an AI algorithm that deliberately offers something close to what a user wants rather than the thing itself.
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