The Algorithm Made Me Do It
Youth audiences are developing new passions not from intent, but from algorithmic exposure. The algorithm surfaces unfamiliar or niche content that hooks them — turning passive curiosity into obsession. This gives rise to a new class of trusted nano-experts (niche creators), and shifts the mechanics of influence from mass to micro.
This change is emotional (identity, validation, joy) and behavioural (trust, peer confirmation, decision-making). It represents a shift from interest-based targeting to aesthetic- and curiosity-driven engagement.
Audience engagement agency Word on the Curb will share how curiosity, creators and chaos are conditioning the next wave of youth obsession.
Hayel Wartemberg is a cultural strategist, speaker, and the co-founder of Word on the Curb — a youth marketing agency powered by cultural insights. He helps brands and organisations connect with young, diverse, and often overlooked audiences through emotionally intelligent strategy, storytelling, and deep community understanding.
A 2023 PROs Awards “Founder of the Year” winner and 2024 Marketing Academy Scholar, Hayel and his time have worked with the likes of Spotify, Just Eat, Pinterest, the Open University and Camden Council to deliver insights-led campaigns, blending lived experience with sharp strategic thinking to challenge assumptions, reframe communications, and move audiences — not just target them.
Sophie Derham is a community and insights strategist with a passion for understanding youth culture that goes beyond just being chronically online and a zillennial herself. With experience spanning market research, strategy, and community engagement at Word on the Curb, she specialises in capturing perspectives in a meaningful way, and turning that insight into actionable strategy for brands.
Sophie’s work sits at the intersection of data and storytelling, for brands like Just Eat, The FA, YouTube and Meta - bridging the gap between what young people think and what businesses need to know.