Is Big Tech Really Hijacking Your Brain? The Story That’s Making You More Addicted
Nir Eyal's counter to the dopamine panic: the 'big tech is hijacking your brain' narrative strips you of…
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The Blog
Ideas on motivation, behavior & design.
Deep dives on the psychology behind why people do what they do — from Yu-kai Chou, creator of the Octalysis Framework. Pick the topic that matters to you.
Yu-kai Chou’s Loyalty Connect Global Keynote (US): Why the Loyalty Industry’s Inflection Point Needs Gamification
Yu-kai Chou delivered the gamification keynote at Loyalty Connect Global US 2026 in Atlanta. Most loyalty programs run…
CONFIG Not CODE: Why Bloom’s Akasha Is the AI Game Builder Everyone Else Got Wrong
Bloom's Akasha ships voice-to-playable-Unity-in-browser with no code generated. Yu-kai Chou, advisor to Bloom, unpacks the CONFIG not CODE…
Why Loyalty Programs Fail: The Mercenary Trap
Most loyalty programs don’t build loyalty. They build mercenaries. People who stay as long as your deal is…
Why Your Training Programs Fail at the Front Line (The Two-Tier Motivation Fix)
A company reached out to me a few years back with what they thought was a gamification problem.…
Gaming the System Is Proof Your Gamification Works
A player in one of my favorite games discovered a glitch that let them kill monsters twice as…
What If Your Endgame Started Too Hard on Purpose?
Have you ever watched your most dedicated users, the ones who stuck around for months, mastered every feature,…
Conversion Copywriting: Why Pain-First Messaging Converts
Here’s something that bothers me about how most marketers write landing page copy: they lead with their product.…
Why Flow Theory Only Explains Half of Engagement
Editor’s note: This essay is the companion piece to the pillar guide Flow Theory: S-Tier Designer’s Guide (Csikszentmihalyi)…