<![CDATA[Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January?]]>Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? Something that promised to be the "first" European social network?

Its name is and it's a fork of . Its founders have ties with European politicians - but there is no official involvement by the EU.

You wouldn't know any of this from media reports because they all rehashed their talking points. So I wrote a post about it, dispelling some myths:

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W Social uncovered: the reality behind the hype

An article dispelling myths about W Social, the new European platform that aims to rival X: it is a fork of Bluesky that shares many similarities with Eurosky and requires government ID to sign up.

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Elena Rossini (blog.elenarossini.com)

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/topic/25f5a850-cab1-40fc-80bd-6194594e3f3f/do-you-remember-the-surprise-announcement-of-a-new-social-network-in-davos-this-past-januaryRSS for NodeFri, 15 May 2026 04:25:35 GMTFri, 08 May 2026 05:41:02 GMT60<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:57:21 GMT]]>@_elena Doing the Lord's Work (TM) -- awesome.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hachyderm.io/users/jzb/statuses/116538359234509956https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://hachyderm.io/users/jzb/statuses/116538359234509956Fri, 08 May 2026 09:57:21 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:56:14 GMT]]>@Gina πŸ₯°πŸ˜˜

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538354864559640https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538354864559640Fri, 08 May 2026 09:56:14 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:54:52 GMT]]>@_elena πŸ”₯πŸ”₯πŸ”₯

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://fosstodon.org/users/Gina/statuses/116538349471701198https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://fosstodon.org/users/Gina/statuses/116538349471701198Fri, 08 May 2026 09:54:52 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:53:21 GMT]]>@_elena true. At least Bluesky/AT Proto is a solid (while US BigTech) basis. And apparently in their entire team is only IT person, thus heavy usage of vibe coding, when you have to build an entire new social media platform (and protocol) from scratch with only one person. The rest of the team is marketing, finance and fundraising experts.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/116155612437593224/statuses/116538343505044773https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/116155612437593224/statuses/116538343505044773Fri, 08 May 2026 09:53:21 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:51:09 GMT]]>@feyter I think they are betting on mandatory age verification in Europe... which would give them a leg up over Eurosky

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538334893676164https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538334893676164Fri, 08 May 2026 09:51:09 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:50:22 GMT]]>@BjornW thank you Bjorn! It means a lot coming from you ❀️

I'm now thinking I need to translate this into French as well... there is SO MUCH misinformation about W Social here

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538331816658922https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538331816658922Fri, 08 May 2026 09:50:22 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:49:18 GMT]]>@m4lvin thank you! ❀️

that was the main goal: use this piece as reference anytime someone brings up W Social and some myths about it

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538327597221432https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538327597221432Fri, 08 May 2026 09:49:18 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:43:35 GMT]]>@hannes99 I'd venture to say that Wedium is FAR shadier because it's not based on an open protocol...

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538305104770416https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116538305104770416Fri, 08 May 2026 09:43:35 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:39:27 GMT]]>@_elena Its goal is to promote you carrying an agent around to spy on you.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.au/ap/users/116264423836711051/statuses/116538288835808761https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.au/ap/users/116264423836711051/statuses/116538288835808761Fri, 08 May 2026 09:39:27 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:26:52 GMT]]>@_elena

"Its founders have ties with European politicians"

Apparently also including the German data protection representative Louisa Specht-Riemenschneider 😏

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundesbeauftragter_f%C3%BCr_den_Datenschutz_und_die_Informationsfreiheit

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]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/116155612437593224/statuses/116538239389978707https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/116155612437593224/statuses/116538239389978707Fri, 08 May 2026 09:26:52 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:25:13 GMT]]>@hannes99

@_elena

We don't want monetization. That's why we're in the Fediverse. Some people (avoiding name-calling here) want monetization. WSocial is for them.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.tchncs.de/ap/users/115592643165869492/statuses/116538232892894187https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.tchncs.de/ap/users/115592643165869492/statuses/116538232892894187Fri, 08 May 2026 09:25:13 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:09:02 GMT]]>@simonzerafa I think calling Blacksky a clone is too limiting as they do a ton of good and original work from what I can tell. @_elena

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/mellifluousbox/statuses/116538169290895508https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/mellifluousbox/statuses/116538169290895508Fri, 08 May 2026 09:09:02 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:06:14 GMT]]>@_elena also see https://infosec.exchange/@adfichter/116533797319369553

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/116155612437593224/statuses/116538158226082588https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/116155612437593224/statuses/116538158226082588Fri, 08 May 2026 09:06:14 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 09:05:37 GMT]]>@_elena Same shit as US big tech, wearing an EU mask…

Which is what I think a lot of this sovereignty hype will boil down to:

A lot of US companies will establish subsidies, that will ”Eurowash” their products. In the background the data access for them stays, and nothing changes. We use the same products under a different name and somebody gets a cut.

Neoliberal corporatism is an ideology, and this is the result. So very few people can even see it.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.green/users/gimulnautti/statuses/116538155824061858https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.green/users/gimulnautti/statuses/116538155824061858Fri, 08 May 2026 09:05:37 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 08:55:28 GMT]]>@_elena and (again W) is just as shady. https://www.rnd.de/wirtschaft/wedium-und-w-social-jetzt-kommen-die-europaeischen-social-media-alternativen-RY5VRNGZXFDXFBCUNSZMZRM6SY.html

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]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/116155612437593224/statuses/116538115920979801https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/ap/users/116155612437593224/statuses/116538115920979801Fri, 08 May 2026 08:55:28 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 08:51:16 GMT]]>@_elena thanks for unmasking the effort. looking forward to the complete unmasking of who is behind it.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.peakx.com/ap/users/116268797783535969/statuses/116538099373662212https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.peakx.com/ap/users/116268797783535969/statuses/116538099373662212Fri, 08 May 2026 08:51:16 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 08:35:22 GMT]]>@_elena Thanks! Let's hope the message lands!

Journalism has been disappointing. One journalist picking up on it was working for Dutch NOS. On launch she asked "Bluesky fork?" and got shut down with a "we'll share tech details later". β°πŸ””

>Eurosky .. carefully planned out,

But also dishonest. Eurosky is an offshoot from a failed global grift now trying the Europe angle.

On launch I emailed back-and-forth with them multiple times to fix their privacy policy. Even now they make false claims.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.online/users/Pepijn/statuses/116538036860655886https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.online/users/Pepijn/statuses/116538036860655886Fri, 08 May 2026 08:35:22 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 08:24:09 GMT]]>@_elena Thank you for all the research and writing it up this way!
Bookmarking it for anyone who will mention "W" to me.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://goto.fiets.pizza/users/m4lvin/statuses/01KR3AZQCCG6TP13XATSEKCMEWhttps://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://goto.fiets.pizza/users/m4lvin/statuses/01KR3AZQCCG6TP13XATSEKCMEWFri, 08 May 2026 08:24:09 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 08:18:23 GMT]]>@_elena

I've also seen references to a BlackSky SM platform which seems to be another Bluesky clone? πŸ™‚πŸ€·β€β™‚οΈ

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://infosec.exchange/users/simonzerafa/statuses/116537970068723405https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://infosec.exchange/users/simonzerafa/statuses/116537970068723405Fri, 08 May 2026 08:18:23 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 08:12:42 GMT]]>@_elena Monet being like: Am I a joke to you?

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.cologne/ap/users/116232768628584081/statuses/116537947763816380https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.cologne/ap/users/116232768628584081/statuses/116537947763816380Fri, 08 May 2026 08:12:42 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 08:01:10 GMT]]>@_elena thank you, for doing the work journalism / media should have been doing!

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/BjornW/statuses/116537902426303647https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/BjornW/statuses/116537902426303647Fri, 08 May 2026 08:01:10 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 07:58:01 GMT]]>@_elena cc @FediVariety

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.codefor.nl/ap/users/116141624676279948/statuses/116537889987463573https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://social.codefor.nl/ap/users/116141624676279948/statuses/116537889987463573Fri, 08 May 2026 07:58:01 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 07:56:37 GMT]]>@_elena At least for me it's clear... W social is a financial project to grap some founding money. It's not a project with European sovereignty in mind or with sovereignty for Europeans.

Therefore, it should be avoided.

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.gamedev.place/users/feyter/statuses/116537884490970822https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.gamedev.place/users/feyter/statuses/116537884490970822Fri, 08 May 2026 07:56:37 GMT<![CDATA[Reply to Do you remember the surprise announcement of a new social network in Davos this past January? on Fri, 08 May 2026 07:25:53 GMT]]>@MichelPatrice hahaha merci Michel ! πŸ˜‚

]]>https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116537763661973970https://board.circlewithadot.net/post/https://mastodon.social/users/_elena/statuses/116537763661973970Fri, 08 May 2026 07:25:53 GMT