Benedict Townsend

Another big change Rich's design team was in the process of launching was a recommended feed.

Another big change Rich's design team was in the process of launching was a recommended feed.

Despite the many complaints you'll see online about heavily curated feeds these days, the fact is that a well-seasoned algorithm will always deliver a better user experience than just a raw conveyor belt of content. Hell, TikTok achieved rapid cultural dominance almost entirely thanks to its revolutionary algorithm that can learn users' likes and interests in record time.

Despite the many complaints you'll see online about heavily curated feeds these days, the fact is that a well-seasoned algorithm will always deliver a better user experience than just a raw conveyor belt of content. Hell, TikTok achieved rapid cultural dominance almost entirely thanks to its revolutionary algorithm that can learn users' likes and interests in record time.

You have to give people what they want, but also remember that people don't really know what they want. not until you bring it to them. And Rich says there was actually a fairly positive response to the design changes they were making. But within the bigger machine that was Twitter, Team Vine felt like a side act.

You have to give people what they want, but also remember that people don't really know what they want. not until you bring it to them. And Rich says there was actually a fairly positive response to the design changes they were making. But within the bigger machine that was Twitter, Team Vine felt like a side act.

When was the first moment that you got a sense that things were maybe on a bit of a downswing?

When was the first moment that you got a sense that things were maybe on a bit of a downswing?

So how big was this Vine team at the time you joined on that top floor?

So how big was this Vine team at the time you joined on that top floor?

In the course of researching this story, one theme keeps surfacing. Various people told us about a tense, uneasy dynamic that existed between Twitter and Vine. It's an odd one because Twitter spotted Vine's star power early, investing big, betting hard on its success. The partnership had all the shine of a red carpet romance, dazzling from the outside.

In the course of researching this story, one theme keeps surfacing. Various people told us about a tense, uneasy dynamic that existed between Twitter and Vine. It's an odd one because Twitter spotted Vine's star power early, investing big, betting hard on its success. The partnership had all the shine of a red carpet romance, dazzling from the outside.

But despite the fanfare, behind the scenes, the chemistry just wasn't there. When did you first become aware that there was this sort of odd relationship between Twitter and Vine?

But despite the fanfare, behind the scenes, the chemistry just wasn't there. When did you first become aware that there was this sort of odd relationship between Twitter and Vine?

Periscope, which you'll be forgiven for forgetting, was a live video streaming app. When Vine started falling out of favor, it became Twitter's new golden child. You know, it's a shame because there was a brief, wonderful period where you could post Vines on Twitter and they would play natively in the feed.

Periscope, which you'll be forgiven for forgetting, was a live video streaming app. When Vine started falling out of favor, it became Twitter's new golden child. You know, it's a shame because there was a brief, wonderful period where you could post Vines on Twitter and they would play natively in the feed.

Vines would be interspersed with tweets in your timeline in a slick way that was honestly very ahead of its time and much more reminiscent of the state of social media these days. It almost made too much sense. Twitter integrating one very popular product with another so that everyone could enjoy mummy and daddy playing nice with each other.

Vines would be interspersed with tweets in your timeline in a slick way that was honestly very ahead of its time and much more reminiscent of the state of social media these days. It almost made too much sense. Twitter integrating one very popular product with another so that everyone could enjoy mummy and daddy playing nice with each other.

Anyway, very quickly Twitter changed the rules so Vines would only post to Twitter as links and would only play when you left the app. It's yet another inflection point. If Twitter had kept Vine properly integrated, would Vine not have lived a little longer? Found it easier to maintain cultural relevance?

Anyway, very quickly Twitter changed the rules so Vines would only post to Twitter as links and would only play when you left the app. It's yet another inflection point. If Twitter had kept Vine properly integrated, would Vine not have lived a little longer? Found it easier to maintain cultural relevance?