AI-Generated Shorts: They Are Borrowing A Page From TikTok’s Playbook To Capture Attention
- The White Hatter
- Oct 4
- 3 min read
The short form video format changed the way youth consume media. TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels popularized endless feeds of rapid fire, algorithmically chosen clips that hold attention by design. Now, we’re entering a new phase. Meta AI has launched Vibes (1), and OpenAI has rolled out the Sora 2 app (2), both of which allow users to create and share AI generated short videos in feeds that look and feel very much to us like TikTok.
This development raises an important question for us here at the White Hatter, “What happens when the world’s most powerful AI algorithms don’t just recommend videos, but actually generate them on the fly for highly influenceable audiences?”
Why we believe this should matter:
TikTok’s success was algorithmic. Its strength lies not in individual videos, but in the way its recommendation engine quickly learns user preferences and feeds them content tailored to hold attention.
AI makes this more intense. Instead of waiting for creators to make content, platforms can instantly generate personalized videos at scale. A young viewer could end up in a feed designed almost entirely by artificial intelligence.
Youth are the most exposed. Teens and preteens already spend significant time on short-form video apps. Their brains are still developing, making them more susceptible to influence, peer pressure, and habituated patterns of use.
It’s important to remember that AI driven video feeds are not entirely negative. In fact, there are potential benefits worth noting.
One area of promise is creativity. Youth and teens may find new ways to experiment with storytelling, art, or even educational content in formats that were not possible before. AI can give them tools to build narratives, design visuals, or present ideas in engaging and imaginative ways.
Access is another key benefit. By generating visual explainer videos, AI has the potential to make complex topics easier to understand. Because these videos can be tailored to different learning styles, they may help more youth and teens grasp difficult subjects, particularly those who struggle with traditional text based materials.
AI tools can also support expression. Youth and teens often use digital platforms to explore their identity and connect with peers. In this space, AI can provide new outlets for self-expression, allowing teens to share ideas, showcase talents, and engage positively with their communities.
However, even with the benefits we do believe that this new rising form of application has risks and concerns that we should consider and talk to our kids about such as:
Hyper-personalization: AI doesn’t just know what your child watches, it can generate videos designed precisely to hold their attention. This increases the risk of compulsive habituated scrolling.
Influence and persuasion: AI-generated feeds could be used to push harmful messages, whether subtle stereotypes, political propaganda, or unhealthy beauty standards.
Erosion of reality: Distinguishing authentic content from synthetic media will become harder, blurring lines between truth and fiction.
Data harvesting: The very systems that generate these videos rely on collecting immense amounts of behavioural data, raising serious privacy concerns.
Weaponization: Sora 2 could be misused to create videos that make a young person appear to do inappropriate things, then share them online as a form of digital peer aggression or cyberbullying.
When TikTok surged in popularity, the conversation centred on regulation, age restrictions, and screen-time concerns. With AI-driven short form feeds, the stakes could rise even higher. These tools could supercharge both creativity and manipulation.
The challenge ahead is not just about individual parenting choices, but about collective responsibility, how parents, caregivers, schools, policymakers, and tech companies set guardrails for a generation growing up in an environment where AI doesn’t just recommend the show, it writes the script and plays the scene in real time. The concern, no such guardrails exist, so once again parents and caregivers need to take the lead on talking to our kids about this. However, to do this we need to educate ourselves, thus the reason for this article.
We predict that AI generated short videos are not simply “the next TikTok.”, they represent a shift in how media is created, consumed, and weaponized for attention and monetization. Awareness, open dialogue, and active guidance will be critical in helping young people navigate this new landscape with resilience and clarity.
Digital Food For Thought
The White Hatter
Facts Not Fear, Facts Not Emotions, Enlighten Not Frighten, Know Tech Not No Tech
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