TikTok is introducing a new feed dedicated to STEM content in honor of Pi Day, the company announced on Tuesday. The feed, which will appear alongside the app’s “Following” and “For You” feeds, aims to give users a dedicated space to explore videos related to science, technology, engineering and math. The STEM feed will be rolling out to users in the U.S. in the coming weeks.
The launch expands on TikTok’s ongoing test of topic feeds, which are currently available in select markets. Topic feeds allow users to explore content across categories like Gaming, Food, Fashion and Sports. Swiping between the feeds shows you content for each category without having to specifically search for it. TikTok is now adding STEM to this list of topics.
The company says STEM-related hashtags have received over 110 billion views to date. TikTok has designed the STEM feed to serve as a destination for users looking to dive into these topics further.
“Whether encouraging aspiring scientists to work out experiments in comments sections or helping a new programmer learn to code, the STEM feed provides a space for co-learning, inspiration, and enrichment,” the company said in a blog post.
TikTok also announced that it’s expanding its partnerships with Common Sense Networks and Poynter to bring high-quality STEM content to its users. As part of the partnerships, Common Sense Networks will assess all content to ensure it’s appropriate for the STEM feed and Poynter will assess the reliability of the information presented. If content does not pass both checkpoints, it will not be eligible for the STEM feed.
With TikTok’s new topic feeds, the company is likely hoping to reach a more defined audience. The feeds could also be a way for the company to better align itself with its competitors. For instance, YouTube has had topic categories at the top of its homepage for quite some time now, allowing users to find content that they’re particularly interested in, whether that’s music, gaming or podcasts.
TikTok says it believes that discovery is essential to the TikTok experience, and that it’s always looking to help users uncover new and relevant content. It’s unknown if TikTok plans add more topic feeds in the future, but it wouldn’t be surprising if the app introduces more categories for things like books and movies.
Source: TechCrunch
