Steve Krug Condemns Social Media's Addictive Design at 77 as 'Worst' Internet Shift in 40 Years
Updated
Updated · Business Insider · Jul 29
Steve Krug Condemns Social Media's Addictive Design at 77 as 'Worst' Internet Shift in 40 Years
1 articles · Updated · Business Insider · Jul 29
Summary
Steve Krug, 77, said social media is "the worst thing" to happen in 40 years, arguing platforms are deliberately engineered to keep users hooked for profit rather than help them accomplish tasks.
Krug, whose 2000 usability classic "Don't Make Me Think" has sold more than 700,000 copies in 15 languages, said frictionless design was meant to make useful actions easier—not to power infinite scroll and algorithm-fed short videos.
Even Krug says he can lose an hour to Facebook Reels, and he warned the problem is especially acute for children because platforms' business models reward addictive behavior.
He proposed adding friction back into social media—such as capping users at 100 followers and making short-form video accessible only through search or subscriptions—to curb virality and compulsive use.
Krug said the broader web has also worsened in key ways, with customer service, forms and subscription cancellations still hard to navigate, and he expects AI to make that trend worse.