The Autoplay Drift
Letting video autoplay continue. The cumulative attention cost of a friction-free screen transition.
Streaming apps are designed to remove friction, transitioning from one episode to the next before the viewer has decided to continue.
We let the next video autoplay, drifting for fifteen minutes before closing the app. The day has already been long, and the screen demands nothing.
But fifteen minutes daily over thirty-five years accumulates to over three thousand hours. That is one hundred and thirty-three days of waking attention.
The drift does not offer real relaxation. It is a state of suspension, keeping the brain active while the body waits to transition to sleep or other work.
Autoplay disabled in settings, not active. 133 days recovered.
The next show started without an invitation. The attention followed automatically.