How Social Media Turned Male Insecurity Into A Business

Looksmaxxing is often framed as self-improvement.But for a growing number of young men, it is becoming something darker: a digital ecosystem where insecurity is amplified, monetized, and pushed to extremes. In this episode of Rethinking Tech, Aparna and Harinda unpack the rise of looksmaxxing, the pressure young men face online, and how platforms can turn vulnerability into engagement, community, and profit. What starts as a desire to “look better” can quickly become a much more dangerous loop — driven by algorithms, creators, subscriptions, and the promise of transformation. What this episode exploresWhat looksmaxxing is and why it is spreadingWhy young men are especially vulnerable to this kind of contentHow social media transforms insecurity into a marketThe role of creators, subscriptions, and online communitiesWhy algorithms reward the most extreme versions of self-optimization Why this mattersInsecurity has always existed.What is new is the scale, the speed, and the business model around it. When platforms can identify vulnerable users, keep them engaged, and sell them increasingly extreme ideas, this stops being a niche internet phenomenon and becomes a much bigger story about technology, identity, and power. About Rethinking TechRethinking Tech explores the intersection of technology, geopolitics, business, and ethics — focusing on how systems actually work, not just how they’re talked about.