Instagram has made a small but significant change to its app that makes photo and video discovery a more personal experience.
The company has tweaked the algorithm that determines what posts appear under the app's Explore tab -- so that the tab displays photos and videos specifically suggested for each user. Previously, the Explore section only displayed posts that were popular among all Instagram users.
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The algorithm now also looks at photos and videos that have been liked by people you follow. "We’re always looking to update the types of photos and videos you see in Explore to better tailor it to you," an Instagram spokesperson told Mashable. "We'll show you a variety of content that people you follow have liked, as well as content that is trending in the Instagram community."
The Explore section will still only display images from public accounts; photos from private accounts won't be visible in the section. Direct messages won't show up either, of course.
Instagram's Explore section first rolled out in 2012 as a replacement for the Popular section, in what was the first major update since the company was acquired by Facebook. The Popular section also displayed photos that had a high number of likes, but didn't include the ability to search by username or hashtag.