Interesting. I never thought of “factoid” that way, and if that is an alternative meaning, then the “new” version has been around a long time. My introduction to it was from reading the “Factoids” section in “3-2-1 Contact” magazine as a kid in the 80s.[0] It was my favorite part of the magazine. Let me feel smart without making much effort.
[0] https://archive.org/details/321contactjul88/page/n7/mode/2up