Singapore – LUX has launched a new campaign that examines how paid social media advertising can influence the content users are shown, positioning ads as tools that may shape algorithmic recommendations over time.
Developed in partnership with VML, the initiative titled ‘LUX My Algorithm’ introduces the concept of “algorithm cleansers”, referring to advertising designed to prompt engagement signals that can affect what appears in users’ feeds.
The campaign follows a testing phase and is now being rolled out across China, India, Thailand, Brazil, Egypt, Indonesia, and Vietnam. It will run across multiple platforms through a mix of branded films, creator collaborations, and localised content.
The approach is based on the premise that user interactions, such as watching, pausing, saving, or sharing content, feed into recommendation systems. By encouraging engagement with its ads, LUX aims to introduce new signals that may alter the type and diversity of content presented to users.
The campaign also draws on research conducted by the brand across Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East, which suggests that users, particularly women, spend extended periods engaging with content shaped by momentary attention rather than deliberate choice. According to LUX, this can result in increasingly narrow content loops over time.
Central to the initiative is the role of paid media, which the brand argues can reach users beyond their established content patterns. The campaign positions this capability as an opportunity to interact with recommendation systems, rather than solely delivering reach or visibility.
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Dr. Catherine Ball, Scientist and Associate Professor at the Australian National University, said, “This campaign is doing something fundamentally different. It repurposes advertising from interruption to intervention. Social media algorithms are designed to keep you watching, and the vast majority of content is constantly keeping you inside this rabbit hole. Conversely only a small percentage actually breaks you out of it, and what actually does that is the ads.”
Additionally, the campaign builds on LUX’s brand positioning around cleansing, extending the concept into digital environments. It seeks to encourage more intentional engagement with content to broaden the range of material users encounter in their feeds.
Commenting on the initiative, Judy Zu, Global Brand Director, LUX, said, “LUX has always stood for self-expression. My Algorithm starts from a simple truth: what we engage with shapes what we see and how we feel. This is about helping people take a more active role in that process, and making everyday interactions online feel more intentional.”
As part of the campaign, LUX conducted a study in which participants engaged consistently with its content over a period of time. The brand reports that this resulted in observable changes in the type and diversity of recommended content.
