TikTok is a machine-learning engine disguised as entertainment. What if an algorithm understood you better than you understood yourself? In this episode, we explore how Zhang Yiming founded ByteDance and created TikTok, a platform powered not by who you follow, but by what you respond to. Every swipe, pause, replay, and skip feeds an AI system that learns in real time. Zhang’s premise: Content should find you, not the other way around. AI could level the playing field for unknown creators. Attention itself is the new economy This approach turned TikTok into one of the fastest-growing platforms in history, creating new careers overnight and reshaping music, culture, marketing, and media. But this story isn’t about fame. It’s about understanding systems: How algorithms shape behavior How software scales influence globally How one technical insight  ...