Instagram full-screen, Cerebral vs DEA
I have been a bit under the weather this week. Please forgive the shorter newsletter this week.
Instagram testing a TikTok-like feed
In a move shocking absolutely no one, Instagram will be trialing (and likely moving to) a full-screen feed. This mimics the TikTok experience of opening the app and immediately seeing fresh content. I argued in a previous week’s post that Twitter should do this as well. This is not a full clone of TikTok just yet. Instagram is based around the social graph, but I presume they will soon test injecting content from accounts you don’t follow next.
This is another step in the ongoing trend of all social apps blurring functionality and design. Social media used to be chronological feeds. Next was algorithmic feeds to curate a growing supply of potential media to show. I imagine the TikTok feed will end up essentially everywhere in the next evolution of the feed.
Cerebral in trouble
A company called Cerebral has been building the HIMS/HERS of mental health. In practice, that may have resembled an ADHD medication factory. Unlike online acne and ED medication, some of the medicines Cerebral prescribes are strongly regulated. News has moved very quickly for this company.
Their main pharmacy Truepill ceased filling ADHD prescriptions.
The DEA and federal prosecutors are now subpoenaing the company.
I will defer judgment until the investigation concludes. A market size analysis may have put these medicines near the top of the list. On another dimension such as danger/risk, these medicines probably should have been low on the list. I am also surprised this practice grew as big as it did before running into trouble.