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[2602.13920] A Comparative Analysis of Social Network Topology in Reddit and Moltbook
Summary
This paper presents a comparative analysis of social network topology between Reddit and Moltbook, an AI-driven platform, highlighting key structural differences.
Why It Matters
Understanding the differences in network topology between human-driven and AI-driven social networks is crucial for developing more effective agent-mediated systems. This research provides foundational insights into how these networks operate, which can inform future designs and applications in social media and AI.
Key Takeaways
- The study compares network topology of Reddit and Moltbook, revealing significant structural differences.
- Moltbook, populated by AI agents, shows distinct edge formation patterns compared to human-driven networks.
- This research lays groundwork for future studies on agent-mediated social systems.
Computer Science > Social and Information Networks arXiv:2602.13920 (cs) [Submitted on 14 Feb 2026] Title:A Comparative Analysis of Social Network Topology in Reddit and Moltbook Authors:Yiming Zhu, Gareth Tyson, Pan Hui View a PDF of the paper titled A Comparative Analysis of Social Network Topology in Reddit and Moltbook, by Yiming Zhu and 2 other authors View PDF HTML (experimental) Abstract:Recent advances in agent-mediated systems have enabled a new paradigm of social network simulation, where AI agents interact with human-like autonomy. This evolution has fostered the emergence of agent-driven social networks such as Moltbook, a Reddit-like platform populated entirely by AI agents. Despite these developments, empirical comparisons between agent-driven and human-driven social networks remain scarce, limiting our understanding of how their network topologies might diverge. This paper presents the first comparative analysis of network topology on Moltbook, utilizing a comment network comprising 33,577 nodes and 697,688 edges. To provide a benchmark, we curated a parallel dataset from Reddit consisting of 7.8 million nodes and 51.8 million edges. We examine key structural differences between agent-drive and human-drive networks, specifically focusing on topological patterns and the edge formation efficacy of their respective posts. Our findings provide a foundational profile of AI-driven social structures, serving as a preliminary step toward developing more robust and a...
