What if Hive Apps adopt these 3 TikTok tools/features?
I've been thinking about this ever since I first got hands-on experience with the TikTok app. The tools and features it offers are truly amazing, and I’ve genuinely been enjoying using them.
Although it's not entirely fair to compare TikTok and Hive directly — since TikTok is centralized while Hive is decentralized — I still believe it makes sense for Hive to adopt some of TikTok’s tools and features. After all, they’re both social media platforms, and TikTok is absolutely dominating right now. It has successfully taken over the social media space and is currently the hottest app out there.
There’s a reason behind its success, and it largely comes down to the powerful tools and features it provides.
As I continue to use TikTok daily, I’ve been learning more about it and gaining confidence in sharing my thoughts on which of its features could be highly applicable to Hive-based apps. I believe the features I’m about to highlight could significantly enhance the user experience across the various frontends built on the Hive blockchain.
Let me start with the TikTok feature I enjoy the most…
1) the For You Page (FYP)!
The FYP (For You Page) feature has had me endlessly scrolling through content — it’s incredibly engaging. I truly believe a similar feature could greatly improve content curation here on Hive.
If you’ve ever curated content on Hive, you’ll know that browsing through the New or Recent posts can feel like a tedious task. It’s such a linear experience — every post that’s published in that moment is displayed for me to curate, regardless of my interests. To be honest, it gets exhausting trying to find a post I actually want to curate after sifting through a bunch of content that doesn’t match my preferences.
Manual curation definitely needs support — whether through AI or an algorithm like TikTok’s — to help surface posts that align with what I’ve curated in the past. I especially feel this need because I usually do manual curation after my day job, when I’m already tired and don’t have the mental energy to take on another demanding task.
That’s why I’d say TikTok’s FYP feature would be a game changer for the curation experience on Hive!
2) TikTok's Reusable Content Components
Have you ever wondered why it's so difficult to create a network effect here on Hive? Or why starting a trend seems almost impossible?
It’s because there’s very little motivation for anyone to make it happen. The Trending page doesn’t really make a post go viral or feel relevant. In fact, landing on the trending page often doesn’t seem to have much impact on someone’s blog at all.
I think we’ve become so focused on originality that we’ve lost sight of collaboration — or what’s commonly known as “remix culture.” There’s a fun and engaging side to creating trends that others can remix, reuse, and adapt to fit their own content.
If you check out my TikTok account, you’ll notice that a lot of my video posts are built off templates or ideas from other creators. I reuse elements like sounds, photo filters, and text styles from videos I really enjoyed. It’s super easy, fun, and it makes me feel connected to the people whose content inspired mine.
Of course, I always put my own twist on it — and that’s what makes it satisfying. It feels good to turn someone else’s idea into something uniquely mine. So, why not bring that same remix energy to Hive? It could spark the kind of network effect that makes this platform more exciting, creative, and alive.
3) Creator Monetization Tools (Live Gifts, Tipping, and Creator Fund)
I've been active on the platform for many years now, and the discussions around the Reward Pool still feel like a never-ending struggle across all types of users.
Most new users, or those with smaller stakes, often feel under-rewarded because their earnings are so low. On the other hand, some high-stake holders feel that certain users are abusing the Reward Pool. And honestly, I can’t blame them for thinking that way — they've invested their own money into the system, so it's understandable that they’d feel uneasy seeing others cashing out rewards they believe aren’t deserved.
Sometimes, this even leads to downvote wars due to disagreements over post rewards — and these conflicts have become one of the more toxic aspects of the platform.
I think we’ve become too focused on the Reward Pool as the only source of income on Hive. That’s why I believe TikTok-style monetization schemes would be a great addition to Hive’s ecosystem. They could shift some of the focus away from the Reward Pool by introducing more earning opportunities for users.
Some of TikTok’s monetization features are powered by other users or businesses partnering with creators to promote products. That makes a lot of sense — especially since Hive apps are, at their core, social media platforms built on-chain.
It’s also a great way for users to reduce their reliance on the Reward Pool. And if that happens, I think we’d see fewer arguments and less tension around reward distribution.
Hive has so much potential as a decentralized social media platform, and adopting proven features from apps like TikTok could take the user experience to the next level. By exploring new monetization models and embracing remix culture, we can create a more vibrant, engaging, and rewarding ecosystem for everyone. It’s time to think beyond the Reward Pool and start building a more dynamic future for Hive.
