Twitter running test to improve image previews

Twitter is running a test with a small subset of iOS and Android users to improve image previews on their platform.

Dantley Davis, Twitter's Chief Design Officer, tweeted that goal of the test is to "give people an accurate preview" of what an image will look like without trial and error.

Currently, the platform automatically crops images on its feed, requiring users to click on the picture to see the full image. The cropping algorithm has been criticised for having alleged baked-in racial bias, prioritizing white faces over darker tones. The algorithm has also been a thorn on the sides of photographers and artists, who prefer to have control over how their image is presented.

In the new system, most single image tweets in normal aspect ratios won't be cropped at all, while wider or taller images will receive crops weighted around the centre.