In the 1990s and early 2000s, the promise of new communication technologies was that it would strengthen democracy and lead to a better world. However, today, the internet is seen as falling short of that goal. Social media platforms rank content based on engagement, leading to an abundance of emotionally provocative posts. Efforts to improve online spaces have focused on content moderation, but this approach only removes the bad without elevating the good. Google subsidiary Jigsaw believes it has found another way. It has developed AI tools that can score posts based on positive attributes like nuance, evidence-based reasoning, personal stories, and compassion.

These tools could enable platforms to rank posts in a new way, prioritizing nuanced and compassionate comments rather than those with the most engagement. While these new tools could be a game-changer for the internet, concerns remain about potential biases, AI-generated content, and the political implications of altering speech rewards. However, if successful, these new algorithms could create a paradigm shift for social media, fostering more positive interactions and potentially reducing the demand for misinformation. Platforms will need to consider implementing these changes, as prioritizing short-term engagement has led to lower quality content. By focusing on long-term engagement and building products that users want to use in the long run, the internet can move away from the race to the bottom.