Twitter’s recent release of its algorithm’s underlying code on GitHub, as promised by Elon Musk when he proposed taking over the platform, has not revealed significant insights into how the algorithm actually works, according to experts who have analyzed the code. The code shared by Twitter was a heavily redacted version that omitted important details, including systems related to ads, trust, and safety, as well as the underlying models used to train the algorithm. This has left the most crucial part of the algorithm inscrutable, according to Sol Messing, associate professor at NYU’s Center for Social Media and Politics.
