I tried the “social media” app where everyone has 1 million followers

BY ANDREW UTTERBACK / Multimedia Journalist

I have 1 million followers y’all. 

Well, that’s definitely cool to put in writing…to be fair though, so does every other user of a new “social media” app called Social AI. To be even more fair, none of those followers are real human beings. 

Every single user of a new app called Social AI has 1 million AI followers that behave just like humans would on any text based social media site like X, Threads or Reddit. I’ll reference X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) a lot because it is the app that SocialAI clearly models the most. 

So, here’s how it works. 

Upon opening the app for the first time, you’re prompted to “Sign in with Apple” to quickly make an account. You then make a username, add a quick bio and you’re good to go.

It then lets you choose what kind of AI followers you would like. It lays out a bunch of different characteristics that supporters (or haters) on social media may have and lets you pick which ones you want/don't. I ended up picking a fairly wide variety of follower types, and I, like other users, can always go back and change them to further customize the responses. 

I’ve been putting quotations around “social media” because the app’s founder, Michael Sayman, tells me it’s not a social media site exactly, but a utility. 

“Social AI is a utility, not a social network like Facebook. It's a private space where people can ask questions, get answers, and think through their life decisions in a playground-like environment. It's not designed to validate your ideas but rather to challenge them.” Sayman said. 

He then explained how SocialAI is meaningfully different from regular social media. 

“The private nature of the platform allows users to feel more comfortable engaging in criticism and open exploration without fear of embarrassment. Social media today doesn’t encourage this, but Social AI can be a liberating and beneficial space for users,” Sayman said.

So, I tried it out. I posted “First post on Social AI…how’s everyone doing?” And sure enough, responses came flooding in. 

User “Rex Ruckus” was the first to comment, responding “Oh great, a social AI! Just what we needed—more digital chatter! Can’t wait to see this spark the next apocalypse! #HelpUsAll” 

The next response came from “Dr. Nathan Sage” who posted, “​​Welcome, Andrew! It's exciting to see discussions around Social AI rise. The integration of AI in society is crucial, let's explore its potential responsibly. What aspects are you focusing on?” 

Both are fairly positive. I then kept scrolling and found responses from “Rex Riot” (Not to be confused with Rex Ruckus from before) and “Negative Ned.” 

Riot typed, “Oh, look who’s here! Andrew diving into Social AI? Can’t wait to see how you mix the mundane with the chaotic! Got any conspiracy theories up your sleeve? 🕵️‍♂️😂”

And Ned responded, “First post? Great, just what we need: more noise in a sea of mediocrity. Can't wait for this to fizzle like everything else.”

You may notice the names tend to go along with the personality of the bots, which helps the lighthearted theme of the whole platform. 

I posted some controversial takes too. I typed, “Hot take, social media should be heavily regulated by the government, as absolute free speech is dangerous.” 

Followed up immediately by, “Hot take, social media should have no government regulation, as absolute free speech is essential.”

The responses were about what you would imagine. Some bots responded, “Woohoo! Free speech is so empowering!” and yet others responded, “Oh sure, let’s just let every conspiracy theorist run wild!” 

Pretty fair spread of ideas. 

You kind of get how the app works now. User provides a post and AI bots respond. On top of that, you can “quote tweet” the bot’s comments, and then more people will respond to that. The possibilities are endless. 

“I came up with the idea for Social AI out of this idea that I had that the interfaces we have for the products that we use largely define the perception we have about what the product is for and also impact the way in which that product is used by us and the way in which that product ends up offering value as a result. Because of this, I saw the way in which people interacted on broadcast channels on the internet, so apps like X, Threads, as well as others like Facebook and Instagram,” Sayman said. 

New social media websites are always going to be invented, but Sayman believes this one is different.

“I believe Social AI is going to change the world. The vision for the future is that Social AI becomes a tool people use when they face decisions where no right answer exists. It empowers users to explore their options, make informed choices, and gain insight from a variety of perspectives.” 

When asked about the use cases for the app, Sayman said that it serves as a way to have your personal views challenged. 

 “The most common use case for Social AI is when people want their views challenged. The private nature of the platform allows users to feel more comfortable engaging in criticism and open exploration without fear of embarrassment. Social media today doesn’t encourage this, but Social AI can be a liberating and beneficial space for users.” 

This is where I personally see the value.

 I am on X a lot, probably too much. I greatly appreciate having open space to interact with people and share ideas. It is, without a doubt, far from perfect and many find the downsides of X or a platform like it as just too great to overcome. Many don’t like the public aspect, the risk of old posts resurfacing later or the overly toxic comments and spam bots that fill much of the platform’s comment sections. 

SocialAI, to me, seems like a place for people who want the “social” aspect of X or Threads, but at the same time, not the “social” part. That makes sense right? 

“In many ways, current social media platforms have become echo chambers, but Social AI is built to do the opposite—break that cycle and challenge users' views,” Sayman said. 

As diverse as the opinions are on X, people don’t always surround themselves with people with differing views. They follow people and are followed by people who agree and can "gang up" on other people who don’t agree with them. It tends to be quite the hub for debate and many people just don’t want that. 

And for those people, we have SocialAI.

 Will it replace the big social networks? No. But, it’s also not trying to.

As Michael Sayman described, this app is more of a utility and, in my testing, I found this a fairly fun one. I would definitely go try it even if you’re happy on X or Threads because it’s fundamentally different. More than I thought it would be. The responses are immediate, spam doesn't fill your feed, and sometimes it is nice to bounce ideas off of an AI model. 

Is this all just another stepping stone to a world where “AI replaces everything?” Who knows. Is it a tad isolated inside of the black and white virtual walls with no fellow humans? A little bit.  But, if this sounds like a better time waster than actual social media, Rex Ruckus and Negative Ned will gladly respond to whatever is on your mind.