According to Inc, the current era of cozy, neutral interior design sameness—think velvet sofas and sage green cabinets—can be traced directly to a major shift that happened about a decade ago. That’s when social platforms like Instagram moved from chronological feeds to algorithmic ones, optimized to show users content they were most likely to engage with. Christiane Robbins, a founding partner of architectural firm MAP Studio, explains that these algorithms are a “mathematical equation based on the statistical middle.” Sara Sugarman, founder and CEO of the furniture brand Lulu and Georgia, which launched in 2012 just before this shift, notes the subtle influence is pervasive, making us think we like a shade of gray simply because we’ve seen it hundreds of times. The result, as cultural critics have pointed out, is a design landscape that is broadly appealing but largely devoid of personal personality.
The Subtle Takeover
Here’s the thing about algorithms: they don’t force anything on you. They just make the middle so comfortable, so familiar, that it starts to feel like your own idea. You scroll, you see another beautiful, serene, neutral room, you double-tap. The system learns. And then it shows you more of the same. It’s a feedback loop of good-enough taste. Before you know it, your own “personal style” is just a slightly remixed version of what the machine already knows works. As Sara Sugarman says, it happens whether you realize it or not. That’s the real power of it. It doesn’t feel like an invasion; it feels like discovery.
Breaking The Loop
So, what’s the plan to bring taste back? It’s not about rejecting the algorithm outright—that’s basically impossible now. It’s about intentionality. For a brand like Lulu and Georgia, it means curating beyond the trend cycle and offering pieces that have character, that might not be for everyone. It’s about creating resources that encourage mixing periods and textures, rather than assembling a pre-approved “look.” It’s a push against the inoffensive. Because true personal taste is often a little offensive to the statistical middle. It takes work to develop, which is the exact opposite of what a frictionless, engagement-optimized feed promises.
A Wider Cultural Hangover
This isn’t just a home decor problem, of course. We see it everywhere algorithms govern discovery: music, fashion, even news. The “Instagram face” and homogenized architecture are part of the same phenomenon Christiane Robbins studies. The middle is safe. The middle gets clicks. But it also flattens everything interesting. The question is, are we all just too tired to fight it? Scrolling is easy. Developing a unique point of view is hard. Maybe the first step is simply recognizing the influence, like Sugarman and Robbins are trying to do. After all, you can’t chart a new course if you don’t know you’re stuck in a current.
