Newsletter

Instagram Hands You the Keys to Your Algorithm

Carson West

— 5 min read

PLUS: Use ChatGPT's new Scheduled Tasks hub to automate your week in 5 minutes

✉️ Editor's Note

I'll be honest — tracking all the AI news this week has felt like drinking from a fire hose. But here's what I love about today's stories: they're not about some far-off future. They're about tools you can use right now to make your digital life a little less noisy and a little more yours. Let's get into it.

— Sarah Chen, Editor

🗞️ TODAY IN AI

1. Instagram tests gesture-based algorithm controls you can use while scrolling: Instagram is testing new ways to customize your feed without digging through settings menus. Pull down anywhere on the feed to access the "Your Algorithm" menu, swipe up on a Reel to trigger customization prompts, or tap buttons beneath each Reel to say "show more" or "show less" of that type of content. It's the latest step in social media platforms giving users real control over what they see. Read more on TechCrunch

2. ChatGPT's Scheduled Tasks finally get a proper command center: OpenAI rolled out a dedicated "Scheduled" page in the ChatGPT sidebar where you can view, pause, edit, or delete all your recurring AI tasks in one place. Whether you've set up daily market briefings, weekly budget check-ins, or morning news summaries, you no longer have to hunt through individual conversations to manage them. See the release notes

3. Entrepreneur uses Claude as a personal health research assistant — and it worked: Tech founder Connor Christou, diagnosed with an aggressive cancer, fed his blood results, scan data, wearable output, and journal entries into Anthropic's Claude to help analyze his treatment options and track symptoms over time. It's a powerful real-world example of using AI not just for work, but for life-critical personal research. Read the full story on TechCrunch

🔬 DEEP DIVE

By Marcus Rivera

Your AI Assistant Now Works on a Schedule (Here's Why That Matters)

ChatGPT's Scheduled Tasks just got a major upgrade — and it could change how you think about AI entirely.

Until now, setting up recurring tasks in ChatGPT felt like leaving sticky notes all over your house. You'd set a daily briefing in one conversation, a weekly reminder in another, and a monthly check-in somewhere you'd inevitably forget. If you wanted to pause or tweak something? Good luck finding it. The new dedicated "Scheduled" hub in the sidebar changes all of that. Every recurring task — whether it's a 7 AM news digest, a Sunday night meal planner, or a Friday afternoon inbox-zero helper — lives in one clean list. You can pause, edit, or delete any of them with a single click.

Why this matters for you. This isn't just a convenience feature. It's the moment AI shifts from being a tool you use to something that works for you in the background. Think of it like setting your DVR to record your favorite shows — except instead of TV, it's summarizing your emails, drafting your weekly goals, or checking on a project status. You set it once, and it just… runs. The less time you spend managing your AI, the more time you spend actually using it.

The takeaway. If you haven't explored Scheduled Tasks yet, this is your sign. Start small: pick one recurring thing you do every week (a grocery list, a weekly priorities review, a "what happened this week" summary for your team) and set it up as a ChatGPT task. The new hub makes it painless to experiment and adjust. Once you see how much mental load it offloads, you'll wonder why you didn't do this sooner.

🎓 AI ACADEMY

By Alex Torres

How to Take Back Control of Your Instagram Feed with the New Algorithm Tools

👤 Best for: Anyone who's ever felt like Instagram is showing them things they don't care about, content creators who want to see more of their niche, parents trying to curate a safer feed

Instagram's new gesture-based algorithm controls let you train your feed in real time — no digging through settings, no guessing what to block. Here's how to use them right now (if you're in the test group).

  1. Pull down anywhere on your feed to see if the "Your Algorithm" menu appears. If it does, you're in the test group. This menu gives you toggles for content categories (like "Creators," "Shopping," "Reels") so you can boost or reduce how much you see of each.
  2. While scrolling through Reels, try swiping up instead of tapping. This triggers a customization prompt where you can tell Instagram whether you want more or less of that type of content in the moment, rather than having to remember to block the account later.
  3. Look for the new buttons beneath each Reel — they'll say "Show more like this" and "Show less like this." Tap them as you scroll. Every tap teaches the algorithm what you actually want, and the feedback is instant.
  4. Revisit your algorithm settings weekly. Once you've trained your feed for a few days, pull down again and see what Instagram has learned. You can always dial things back if the algorithm overcorrects.

Sample prompt (for ChatGPT to help you plan your feed strategy):

I'm trying to see more [specific content, e.g., "small business tips" or "watercolor art"] on Instagram and less [specific content, e.g., "celebrity gossip" or "dance challenges"]. Help me create a 5-minute daily routine using the new gesture-based algorithm controls to train my feed more effectively. Include what to look for and what to avoid.

💡 Pro tip: Go through your "Following" list and mute accounts for 30 days instead of unfollowing. While you train the algorithm, this removes their content from your feed without burning bridges — you can unmute later once your algorithm has learned your preferences.

⚡ QUICK HITS

  • 🔧 Apple Vision Pro exec reportedly leaves for OpenAI: Paul Meade, the VP behind Apple's Vision Pro and upcoming smart glasses, is leaving to lead OpenAI's new hardware division. This signals OpenAI's push into physical AI devices — think AI glasses and wearables. Read more on TechCrunch
  • 🎯 Asian AI startups rush to fill the gap left by Anthropic's banned models: With Anthropic's Mythos export restrictions still in place, Asian startups are launching their own versions with similar capabilities. The competitive landscape for advanced AI models is shifting fast. Read more on TechCrunch
  • 🚀 SoftBank CEO questions Elon Musk's orbital data center plans: As AI demand skyrockets, questions about infrastructure costs and feasibility are growing louder — and what happens with AI data centers affects how much AI services will cost everyday users. Read more on TechCrunch

💬 PROMPT OF THE DAY

Weekly Review Assistant (for reflecting on your week and planning the next one)

I want to do a 10-minute weekly review. Please help me reflect on this past week by asking me these questions one at a time, waiting for my answer before moving to the next:

1. What was your biggest win this week?
2. What drained your energy the most?
3. Did anything surprise you?
4. What's one thing you'd do differently?

After I answer all four, summarize my week in 3 sentences and suggest 3 priorities for next week based on what I shared. Keep it short and actionable.

See you tomorrow,
The Have AI Do It Team
Sarah, Marcus, Alex & the crew

We translate 'Tech Velocity' into 'Everyday Utility.'

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