Algorithm talks

An algorithm is a set of step-by-step instructions a computer follows to solve a problem or make a decision. In digital products, algorithms decide what appears in a feed, which products get recommended and how results are ranked, often using machine learning trained on large amounts of data.

For designers, algorithms shape much of what users see, so understanding their strengths and blind spots is part of designing a good experience.

The two talks here take complementary views. Andreas Refsgaard’s Playful Machine Learning (UX Riga, 2019) explores machine learning as a creative material, while Tricia Wang’s TED talk The human insights missing from big data (2017) argues that data-driven systems miss things only human insight can provide.