Nextdoor's Assistant Feature powered by ChatGPT

Nextdoor, the neighborhood social network, has announced the launch of a new feature powered by OpenAI’s ChatGPT, called “Assistant”. The feature is designed to help users write better posts that are more likely to drive positive community engagement. Nextdoor’s Assistant provides suggestions to users when writing new posts, helping them reword potentially harmful comments in a more friendly manner. The generative AI technologies used by Nextdoor can also analyze the topic and context of conversations, providing more personalized and relevant content to users.

The company has been testing the new features with select users and is making them more broadly available starting today. Nextdoor has been careful to prioritize safety with this launch, ensuring that users don’t have to interact with the new features and can still post as they would like to while adhering to the platform’s community guidelines.

Nextdoor CEO Sarah Friar notes that the company plans to continue testing the features and rolling out the technology safely before making it available to everyone. Friar also mentions that Nextdoor plans to continue testing generative AI models and is building a dedicated generative AI team to advance the company’s use of AI across its platform.

The new features were initially tested by 25% of Nextdoor's users, and the business is now making them more widely available. However, Nextdoor doesn't currently have any plans to make the new features available to all of its customers. According to Friar, Nextdoor intends to keep evaluating the features and ensure that it is deploying the technology responsibly before making it accessible to everyone. The functionalities will gradually be made available to everyone in the United States, and then finally to the other markets where Nextdoor is present.

Nextdoor’s revamp of its app last year was part of the company’s goal to create a welcoming neighborhood both online and offline. The launch of the Assistant feature is yet another step in this direction, ensuring that users are mindful of the tone of their posts and the impact they may have on their community.

All things considered, the usage of AI to support user-generated content is growing in popularity, with numerous social media platforms adding comparable capabilities. It will be intriguing to observe how generative AI technology develops in the future because it has the potential to make social media platforms more welcoming and secure for all users.