One of the core features of Twitter’s redesign last year was the addition of the Discover tab in the web and mobile interface. Today, the company is launching its first major update to this feature. The new and improved Discover tab, says Twitter, will now begin to surface more personalized content. Starting today, the algorithm that populates this feature with stories will put a stronger emphasis on the tweets that are popular among the people you follow and their friends. This should make for a more personalized experience and highlight content that is more relevant to the individual user.
When it first launched the Discover tab last year, its users’ reactions were somewhat mixed. As our own Eric Eldon noted at that time, the stories Twitter included in this section were often not that interesting and Twitter didn’t want to really talk about how it picked these stories in the first place. In January, though, Twitter acquired personalized social news startup Summify and it looks like at least some of that company’s expertise is now flowing into Twitter’s own products.
This updated design for the Discover Tab will now also highlight who tweeted a particular story. This, says Twitter, will help users understand why each story it highlights matters to them. This will also make it easier for users to join into their friends’ conversation, as the new Discover tab also lets you reply, retweet and favorite these tweets.
Twitter will start rolling out this update today and plans to bring it to Twitter.com and its iOS and Android apps in the “coming weeks.” The company promises that it “will continue to work to make discover on Twitter a magical experience that brings you instantly closer to the information that matters most to you at the right time, any time.”