🦅 The Real Logic Behind the Instagram Algorithm

In this issue, you’ll find:

• The real logic behind the Instagram algorithm

• News creators should know

• Which platform will be the best place to grow an audience in 2026?

The Real Logic Behind the Instagram Algorithm

I have to start by saying I’m not an expert of Instagram.

But the platform is huge. It’s roughly four times bigger than 𝕏 in terms of MAU. So I want to focus more on it in the coming year.

This weekend, I listened to an interview featuring Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram, to better understand how the platform really works.

What stood out is how different this is from the stories creators tell themselves when a post flops. Here are three things I’m personally testing.

1. Instagram Is Not Judging You, It Is Testing Each Post

One idea completely reframed how I look at posting. Instagram is not evaluating you as a creator. It is evaluating each individual post.

The system is not thinking about your history, your effort, or how long you have been consistent. It is simply asking:

Who might enjoy this?

Adam described the feed like an audition. Every public post gets a small initial push to see how people react. If engagement is better than average, distribution expands. If not, it quietly stops.

That explains why a tiny account can go viral and why a big account can miss. It also explains why one random post can outperform weeks of work.

2. Early Signals Matter, But Views Are a Distraction

I used to look at views and decide how I felt about a post. That turns out to be the wrong metric.

According to Adam, what really matters is how people behave after seeing your content. Likes, comments, shares, saves. All relative to how many people saw it.

A tiny improvement in engagement rate is a big deal internally. Going from average to slightly better than average is often enough to trigger more distribution.

This matches something creators feel intuitively. They can tell early when a post has energy. It is not the view count. It is the reaction density.

3. Most Reach Drops Are Not Punishment

Shadow banning comes up a lot. Adam was pretty direct here.

Yes, reach can be limited in specific cases. But most drops happen for a simpler reason.

Your audience stops reacting.

If you suddenly post about something people did not follow you for, engagement falls. When engagement falls, distribution follows.

The algorithm is not making a moral judgment. It is just responding to signals.

This also explains why topic pivots feel painful. The system needs time to relearn who your content is for.

Here’s the full interview:

Instagram’s Redesign Reignites Creator Anger Over Reach and Relevance

Instagram’s latest navigation change has triggered backlash that goes far beyond button placement. Creators and users argue the platform is increasingly prioritizing algorithmic viral videos over posts from accounts they actually follow. Many say content creation now feels hidden and unrewarded, while engagement and reach continue to decline. The reaction highlights a deeper concern that Instagram is losing its original identity as a community-driven platform.

→ Find out more

Seed Funding Grows, But Fewer Startups Are Getting the Check

Carta’s latest data shows seed funding dollars rising again in 2025, but flowing into fewer rounds. Startups still sell about 20% at seed, yet the path to Series A is getting longer and more uncertain. Team sizes keep shrinking, solo founders are increasing, and hiring is at its lowest level since before 2019. Geography and sector matter more than ever, with SF and New York capturing most top seed rounds and AI-heavy sectors attracting disproportionate capital.

→ Find out more

One in Three Podcast Creators Quit as Video Production Outpaces How People Actually Listen

New research shows that one in three podcast creators eventually quit, despite lower entry barriers and better tools. The data suggests burnout is driven less by adoption issues and more by a mismatch between video-heavy production demands and audio-first consumption habits. While 71% of active creators now include video, many lapsed creators still prefer listening over watching. Platforms face a growing challenge in supporting sustainable creator workflows rather than pushing format expansion alone.

→ Find out more

Last poll: What's Your Prediction for 2026?

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 💸 𝕏 Money will launch (41.18%)

🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 😎 Digital glasses will be the next big thing

🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 📈 Threads by Meta will be bigger than 𝕏

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🛍️ TikTok livestream shopping will go mainstream

That’s it for now, everyone! We’ll meet again next week to discuss some more of this!

Don’t forget to try Hypefury (for free) if you haven’t yet.

Feel free to reply to this email. It goes directly to me.

Cheers,

Yannick Veys
Co-founder and CMO of Hypefury