diff --git a/home-mixer/benches/author_socialgraph_benchmark.rs b/home-mixer/benches/author_socialgraph_benchmark.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f0e49a1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/home-mixer/benches/author_socialgraph_benchmark.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,166 @@
+use std::time::Instant;
+
+// Mock structures to replicate the production environment
+#[derive(Clone, Debug, Default)]
+pub struct PostCandidate {
+    pub author_id: u64,
+    // other fields are not relevant for this specific benchmark
+}
+
+#[derive(Clone, Debug, Default)]
+pub struct UserFeatures {
+    pub blocked_user_ids: Vec<i64>,
+    pub muted_user_ids: Vec<i64>,
+}
+
+#[derive(Clone, Debug, Default)]
+pub struct ScoredPostsQuery {
+    pub user_features: UserFeatures,
+}
+
+pub struct FilterResult {
+    pub kept: Vec<PostCandidate>,
+    pub removed: Vec<PostCandidate>,
+}
+
+// The "Before" implementation: Uses cloning
+#[allow(dead_code)]
+fn filter_before(
+    query: &ScoredPostsQuery,
+    candidates: Vec<PostCandidate>,
+) -> FilterResult {
+    // OLD CODE: Cloning vectors
+    let viewer_blocked_user_ids = query.user_features.blocked_user_ids.clone();
+    let viewer_muted_user_ids = query.user_features.muted_user_ids.clone();
+
+    if viewer_blocked_user_ids.is_empty() && viewer_muted_user_ids.is_empty() {
+        return FilterResult {
+            kept: candidates,
+            removed: Vec::new(),
+        };
+    }
+
+    let mut kept: Vec<PostCandidate> = Vec::new();
+    let mut removed: Vec<PostCandidate> = Vec::new();
+
+    for candidate in candidates {
+        let author_id = candidate.author_id as i64;
+        let muted = viewer_muted_user_ids.contains(&author_id);
+        let blocked = viewer_blocked_user_ids.contains(&author_id);
+        if muted || blocked {
+            removed.push(candidate);
+        } else {
+            kept.push(candidate);
+        }
+    }
+
+    FilterResult { kept, removed }
+}
+
+// The "After" implementation: Uses references
+#[allow(dead_code)]
+fn filter_after(
+    query: &ScoredPostsQuery,
+    candidates: Vec<PostCandidate>,
+) -> FilterResult {
+    // NEW CODE: Using references
+    let viewer_blocked_user_ids = &query.user_features.blocked_user_ids;
+    let viewer_muted_user_ids = &query.user_features.muted_user_ids;
+
+    if viewer_blocked_user_ids.is_empty() && viewer_muted_user_ids.is_empty() {
+        return FilterResult {
+            kept: candidates,
+            removed: Vec::new(),
+        };
+    }
+
+    let mut kept: Vec<PostCandidate> = Vec::new();
+    let mut removed: Vec<PostCandidate> = Vec::new();
+
+    for candidate in candidates {
+        let author_id = candidate.author_id as i64;
+        let muted = viewer_muted_user_ids.contains(&author_id);
+        let blocked = viewer_blocked_user_ids.contains(&author_id);
+        if muted || blocked {
+            removed.push(candidate);
+        } else {
+            kept.push(candidate);
+        }
+    }
+
+    FilterResult { kept, removed }
+}
+
+fn main() {
+    println!("Running AuthorSocialgraphFilter Benchmark...");
+
+    let iterations = 5000;
+    let num_candidates = 1000;
+    let num_blocked = 2000;
+    let num_muted = 2000;
+
+    println!("Configuration:");
+    println!("  Iterations: {}", iterations);
+    println!("  Candidates per iteration: {}", num_candidates);
+    println!("  Blocked users size: {}", num_blocked);
+    println!("  Muted users size: {}", num_muted);
+
+    // Setup data
+    let mut blocked_ids = Vec::with_capacity(num_blocked);
+    for i in 0..num_blocked {
+        blocked_ids.push(i as i64);
+    }
+    let mut muted_ids = Vec::with_capacity(num_muted);
+    for i in 0..num_muted {
+        muted_ids.push((i + num_blocked) as i64);
+    }
+
+    let query = ScoredPostsQuery {
+        user_features: UserFeatures {
+            blocked_user_ids: blocked_ids,
+            muted_user_ids: muted_ids,
+        },
+    };
+
+    let mut candidates_template = Vec::with_capacity(num_candidates);
+    for i in 0..num_candidates {
+        candidates_template.push(PostCandidate { author_id: i as u64 });
+    }
+
+    // Warmup
+    print!("Warming up...");
+    for _ in 0..100 {
+        filter_before(&query, candidates_template.clone());
+        filter_after(&query, candidates_template.clone());
+    }
+    println!(" Done.");
+
+    // Benchmark "Before"
+    let start_before = Instant::now();
+    for _ in 0..iterations {
+        filter_before(&query, candidates_template.clone());
+    }
+    let duration_before = start_before.elapsed();
+    println!("Before (Clone): {:.4}s", duration_before.as_secs_f64());
+
+    // Benchmark "After"
+    let start_after = Instant::now();
+    for _ in 0..iterations {
+        filter_after(&query, candidates_template.clone());
+    }
+    let duration_after = start_after.elapsed();
+    println!("After (Ref):    {:.4}s", duration_after.as_secs_f64());
+
+    // Results
+    let improvement = duration_before.as_secs_f64() - duration_after.as_secs_f64();
+    let percent = (improvement / duration_before.as_secs_f64()) * 100.0;
+
+    println!("--------------------------------------------------");
+    println!("Improvement: {:.4}s ({:.2}%)", improvement, percent);
+
+    if duration_after < duration_before {
+        println!("SUCCESS: Optimization is faster.");
+    } else {
+        println!("FAILURE: Optimization is slower or same.");
+    }
+}
diff --git a/home-mixer/filters/author_socialgraph_filter.rs b/home-mixer/filters/author_socialgraph_filter.rs
index 8b34e45..3e5c973 100644
--- a/home-mixer/filters/author_socialgraph_filter.rs
+++ b/home-mixer/filters/author_socialgraph_filter.rs
@@ -13,8 +13,8 @@ impl Filter<ScoredPostsQuery, PostCandidate> for AuthorSocialgraphFilter {
         query: &ScoredPostsQuery,
         candidates: Vec<PostCandidate>,
     ) -> Result<FilterResult<PostCandidate>, String> {
-        let viewer_blocked_user_ids = query.user_features.blocked_user_ids.clone();
-        let viewer_muted_user_ids = query.user_features.muted_user_ids.clone();
+        let viewer_blocked_user_ids = &query.user_features.blocked_user_ids;
+        let viewer_muted_user_ids = &query.user_features.muted_user_ids;
 
         if viewer_blocked_user_ids.is_empty() && viewer_muted_user_ids.is_empty() {
             return Ok(FilterResult {