I wanted to share with you a bit about my perspective on social media since its inception in the 90s to 2000s. In the beginning, there were websites like MySpace and Friendster, apps like AIM and MSN Messenger, and online games like Runescape, MapleStory, and Neopets, and at least from my perspective growing up, people used to be much more pleasant online, on these platforms or otherwise.
My experience might been specific to me, but I saw most people trying to get along, giving others the benefit of the doubt, sharing helpful information, and helping each other accomplish things they wanted to do (most of which I noticed was related to ‘hacking’ or modifying video game files for cheating or being creative with the game’s design).
On Runescape, I saw experienced players being happy to help newer players in various ways (I was one of them), and most people typed appropriate messages, not insulting people for things they haven’t yet mastered. On MapleStory, people were happy to come together into parties, not being upset about nobody joining them within 10 seconds. On Neopets, almost everyone was trading and sharing, interacting positively with each other to get better “Pokémon” before (or at the same time as) Pokémon was a huge thing in the West.
Even the beginning of Facebook was good, when they actually cared about user experience for user experience’s sake, not like now, and this is just my opinion based on my technical knowledge, information I’ve gathered, and my experience using the platform throughout its lifetime, not to mention all the scandals, including Cambridge Analytica among many others.
I kept asking myself “what happened?”.
Now, games are filled with rage and insults, and Facebook, along with many other platforms, seem to design their features solely to addict people to their platforms for the purpose of exposing them to more ads and generate more revenue from them, essentially monetizing people’s time and attention in a way that gives very little, if any genuine value to the people, even harming them in multiple ways, but gives Facebook and the other platforms more money.
Worse, those platforms (again just my perception) with all their data analytics seem to frequently and consistently ignore troubling signs of people’s behaviour while using their platform because changing it would mean they lose money in the short term, and when those troubling signs become very serious where other people find out and the government gets involved, they do the absolute bare minimum (and ineffective) duct tape adjustments that are just enough to show that they’ve “done something about it”.
Imagine your friend asks someone to walk them home because they’re afraid someone’s following them, and that person takes literally one step forward, then says “I’ve walked with you this far, so it should be good now”, and leaves them alone, but then posts everywhere about how they ‘helped’ your friend.
That’s what those types of companies are doing, and it’s just hurting people, destroying lives, and holding civilization back from amazing progress, because civilization is made of people, and when the people are abused like this, civilization cannot move forward effectively together.
But instead, now imagine a company that wants to do better for people, that actually is doing better for people. What does that look like to you? What does that company avoid doing, and what does it do better?
Ugeddit is the company I started for exactly this. I want to bring back positive online experiences and collaboration, where people aren’t insulting each other, trying to defend their pride, or putting each other down so they can appear smarter or stronger, no.
I want to see people helping each other because they literally want to help each other do better, where they ask how they can help, and then they just do it because it feels good to see someone else improve, not even because of your help but just to see them improve, do better, and become happier with themselves. Imagine that.
Those companies are designing features that addict people to a platform that shows them unwanted ads, shows them photos of people who they compare themselves to and become depressed, and shows them the same regurgitated content over and over again, trapping them in a negative echo chamber of isolation, hate, or anxiety…
Instead of that, I want to design features that are addicting, yes, but addicting people to learning, giving people an adrenaline rush for self-improvement, and giving little and big rewards for helping others accomplish things.
Ugeddit is becoming this, with my passion.
Imagine a platform—no, a whole company—that is conceptualized, designed, and built from the ground up, from its very foundation, to help improve people’s lives, to help people achieve their version of success, to believe in and accomplish their highest goals.
No, this isn’t an MLM scam company trying to sell you hopes and dreams in the form of “products that do nothing, and then disappear”. Those companies do exactly the same thing: get people addicted to their idea, so they can make money off of them, and then leave them in the wreckage of depression and failure after they’re done with them.
But compared to that, what Ugeddit will do… is lift people up. Every person using our platform, every feature we design, and every decision we make will give you value, will give the people using our platform positive, lasting, and accumulating value that when they find out what we’re doing behind the scenes, instead of being outraged… have you ever received an incredible gift from your family or friends that wasn’t just what you wanted, but was exactly what you needed? People will feel like that about Ugeddit.
I want to design every component, every widget, and every piece of Ugeddit so that when 2 billion people are using our platform, the global statistics will show people’s overall happiness and comfort in life rising, their feelings of connection and support growing, and their capabilities as people climbing exponentially.
This is just a part of my vision, and the more you understand me, then the more you want to help me do this better, and the more Ugeddit.