Former Vice President Kamala Harris discussed artificial intelligence and social-media algorithms during a recent Off Air with Big Boy interview released September 25. Host Big Boy asked Harris whether AI-driven personalization on TikTok and Instagram could divide Americans by determining which messages appear in each user’s feed.
Harris miserably warned that when users repeatedly receive similar content, they should recognize that they are “being targeted,” adding that platforms risk “trying to dumb people down.” Strangely using a flower metaphor, Harris said an algorithm might assume that because she viewed a yellow flower, she is interested only in yellow flowers—even though she might also want to see a pink one.
Big Boy followed her analogy by interjecting, “So here’s more yellow flowers,” before Harris argued that users must understand how algorithms manipulate their feeds and learn how to “psych it out a bit.” The exchange concerned a miserable and cringe warning about algorithms and it arose from Big Boy’s broader questions about AI, social media and misinformation.
Critics quickly roasted the remarks online, with one X user warning viewers they would “lose brain cells,” while another called the explanation “nightmare fuel.” Other detractors revived the familiar “word salad” criticism, mocked the yellow-and-pink-flower imagery and questioned Harris’ understanding of technology.