Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.LinkedIn is deploying artificial intelligence to issue career advice and has introduced games to the platform, in a drive to hook in users more often and stimulate growth in the fiercely competitive social media industry.The professional social network has recently introduced daily puzzles, as well as AI features to develop articles that can advise workers.The move is part of a wider overhaul of the Microsoft-owned platform, better known for its narrow focus as a professional development tool, with members typically logging in less frequently than users of entertainment-focused networks such as Facebook and TikTok. Slowing revenue growth has raised alarm bells about LinkedIn’s traditional model, with analysts highlighting a need for the platform to broaden out, keep users on the site and build its income streams beyond subscriptions. “It’s about building this daily habit,” editor-in-chief Daniel Roth told the Financial Times. “Once you’re on LinkedIn, it’s time to share your knowledge, get knowledge, get information and get content.”LinkedIn said it had registered “record engagement” of 1.5mn content interactions a minute in June, but declined to reveal figures for site traffic or active users. Data from analytics firm Similarweb shows that visits to the platform, which hit 1.8bn last month, have climbed in recent years, though growth has stagnated since the beginning of 2024. Year-on-year growth of site visits slowed to 5 per cent in June, less than half the rate averaged in 2021 and 2022. “In order to get continued growth, they may need to make the platform ‘stickier’,” said Kelsey Chickering, a media analyst at Forrester. “Just being a place for jobs and applications may not be enough to keep gaining consumers’ attention and time.” The latest push for engagement comes as LinkedIn seeks to boost its advertising business even as marketers’ budgets have tightened. LinkedIn has already pushed to cut costs, with two rounds of lay-offs last year affecting more than 5 per cent of its roughly 20,000 employees. Daily games, launched in May, seek to engage users by recording “streaks” of puzzles completed and show who among their connections have played. They can share their scores and view leaderboards comparing different industries, companies and universities. Roth said the games were intended to serve as conversation starters and were designed to be quick due to LinkedIn’s role as a professional site. “You should not be spending a ton of time on these things,” he said. The platform adopted an AI feature last year that generates advice questions and asks relevant specialists to add comments and contributions, that are compiled into “collaborative articles”. As part of its push to engage users more, LinkedIn has also begun aping the algorithmically driven feeds of platforms such as X, TikTok and Instagram. Users will see posts and videos from creators that the algorithm predicts they will interact with, along with content from people they follow. Some analysts warned that LinkedIn risked putting off existing users if efforts to boost engagement fail to align with the platform’s reputation for professionalism and trust.“Practical advice and tools are the best bet for expanding usage: getting back to that core mission of why people use LinkedIn rather than competing in different spaces that you don’t have to compete in,” said Rebecca McGrath, a technology analyst at Mintel.
