LinkedIn’s new features "Top Voices” and “Collaborative Articles” - a treasure trove of data for AI-driven initiatives

-It’s the SoMe classic; if you are not paying for the product, you are the product.?

As I’ve been bombarded with notifications from LinkedIn with AI generated “collaborative articles”, or as stated on the articles “Powered by AI and the LinkedIn community”?on various subjects for me to comment on, I’ve spend a bit of time over the weekend to try to understand the reason behind and to play with the feature, here’s what I’ve learned.?

LinkedIn has for a while been trying to move from primarily being a job search and sales/network site to also be the place for professional insights, industry news, and thought leadership. Among the myriad of features LinkedIn offers, the new kid on the block is the "Top Voices" and “Collaborative Articles” feature. I do purposefully mention the two together as they are closely connected because you need to contribute to the articles to earn a Top Voice badge.?

Linkedin describe that they have developed the feature as a new way to tap into the collective knowledge of the LinkedIn community so you can learn from experts across professional topics. (Link )?

LinkedIn's "Top Voices" feature apparently spotlights individuals who consistently share insightful content, spark meaningful discussions, and contribute to the enrichment of the platform's ecosystem. But beyond the surface level of recognition lies a treasure trove of data waiting to be unlocked and harnessed for the benefit of users and the platform itself.?

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Leveraging Data for AI-driven Insights?

The data generated by “Top Voices” and "Collaborative Articles" holds immense potential for driving AI-driven initiatives aimed at enhancing user experience, content relevance, and platform engagement.??

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Here’s how:??

1. Content Analysis and Recommendation Systems: By analysing the content shared by top voices, LinkedIn can train machine learning models to better understand user preferences and recommend relevant content tailored to each individual’s professional interests.?

1. User Engagement and Behaviour Analysis: Insights gleaned from top voices’ engagement patterns can inform AI algorithms about user behaviour and preferences, leading to more effective engagement strategies and platform optimization.?

1. Identifying Emerging Trends and Thought Leaders: AI-powered analysis of top voices’ content can help LinkedIn identify emerging trends, topics of interest, and up-and-coming thought leaders within various industries, ensuring the platform remains at the forefront of industry discussions.?

1. Personalization and Customization: AI techniques can personalize the user experience by recommending top voices and their content based on individual preferences, connections, and engagement history, thereby enhancing user satisfaction and retention.?

1. Natural Language Processing (NLP) for Content Understanding: Applying NLP techniques to analyse the content shared by top voices enables LinkedIn to extract key insights, understand context, and gauge sentiment, facilitating more meaningful interactions among users.?

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Conclusion?

LinkedIn’s “Top Voices” and "Collaborative Articles" features isn’t just about recognition; it’s a catalyst for innovation, driving AI-powered initiatives that elevate the user experience and foster deeper connections within the professional community. By leveraging the wealth of data generated by top voices, LinkedIn continues to solidify its position as the premier platform for networking, knowledge-sharing, and professional growth in the digital age.?

Being an active LinkedIn user I'm on one hand looking forward to see the platform creating more value and on the other hand fearfull on how they will use the data. I guess only the future will tell, but knowing that Microsoft, the owner of Linkedin, is a commercial organisation, we must expect that it will be used for commercial gain, the questions is just to what extent...

One thing that I would have like to see from Linkedin is a more transparent communication about the treasure trove of data they are creating with this.?

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