Editorial illustration for Sora Marks Shift Away from People-Centric Social Media, Developers Say
Sora Redefines Video Creation Beyond Social Media Trends
Developers say Sora, unlike Vine/TikTok, is not about people in social media
OpenAI's new Sora video tool has developers talking, but not about the next viral dance. They're arguing it marks the end of social media as a human space.
The platform feels different. Vine and TikTok were built on people. Their content was personal, messy, human.
Sora isn't. It generates scenes from text, bypassing the creator entirely. This is not an iteration.
It's a rejection of the premise that has defined the last fifteen years of the internet.
Social media's core promise was connection. Sora suggests the next stage might be something else: consumption of the synthetic, interaction with the algorithmic.
Unlike Vine and TikTok, however, Sora “feels like a clear artifact of the current stage of social media,” Twyman says. “It’s not about people anymore.” That’s also a growing concern among developers who say there are now too many social networking apps that have a poor understanding of social dynamics. Like Sora, they are “inherently antisocial and nihilistic,” says Rudy Fraser, the creator of Blacksky, the custom feed and moderation service for Black users on Bluesky. “They’ve given up on fostering real human connection and are looking to profit on supplying people with artificial connection and manufactured dopamine.” Many will assume that Sora represents a new era of social media, but that’s wrong.
Fraser's word choice is precise and damning: antisocial, nihilistic. These aren't bugs in the new model. They are its features.
The goal shifts from facilitating a party to dispensing a drug. The profit is in the artificial hit.
This is the real inflection point. Not better video, but the removal of the person from the equation. When Twyman says it's not about people anymore, he's describing a finished transition.
The platform is the product. The user is just the intake valve.
We built these networks to see each other. The next wave seems designed to see past us.
Further Reading
- The 'TikTok of AI' – why OpenAI's Sora 2 will disrupt social media - MIDiA Research
- OpenAI's Sora 2 Gets a Product Roadmap - Marketing AI Institute
- Sora 2 is here | OpenAI - OpenAI
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Common Questions Answered
How does Sora represent a departure from traditional social media platforms like Vine and TikTok?
Sora shifts away from people-centric content creation by focusing on AI-generated video rather than user-generated personal storytelling. Unlike previous platforms that centered human creators, Sora represents a more mechanistic approach to content generation that prioritizes technological capability over personal narrative.
What concerns are developers raising about the emergence of platforms like Sora?
Developers are worried that new social media tools like Sora are becoming 'inherently antisocial and nihilistic' by moving away from genuine human connection. They argue that these platforms demonstrate a poor understanding of social dynamics and are transforming digital spaces into more impersonal, technology-driven environments.
What does Rudy Fraser suggest about the current state of social networking apps?
Rudy Fraser, creator of Blacksky, criticizes emerging platforms for having a poor understanding of social dynamics and losing sight of meaningful human interaction. He specifically describes these new platforms as 'inherently antisocial and nihilistic', highlighting a growing concern about the direction of digital social spaces.
