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Module 2: Problem of Generative AI

LESSON 2.1: HORIZON EUROPE PROJECT TWON

TWON is an EU-funded project that looks at how social media platforms—like (Twitter) TikTok, and Facebook—can influence public debate and political opinions. The goal is to understand how these platforms might spread fake news, encourage extreme views, and divide society. Instead of relying on real platforms, TWON built a digital copy (a “digital twin”) of a social network. This lets researchers safely test how different platform designs and algorithms affect what people see and how they react. 

They created:

  • A digital twin of a social network platform to simulate how users connect and share content. 
  • A user model using AI bots that behave like real people with different opinions.  Can be tested with a micro TWONy application
  • A test social network where real people (and possibly also agents)  interact. 
  • A study to observe how debates unfold on this test platform. 
  • Tools to measure the quality of online discussions. Deliverable summarizing this is available at this link
  • Ethical guidelines to ensure the research is done responsibly are available at this link.

Why It Matters

By learning how online platforms shape opinions and spread misinformation, TWON aims to: 

  • Help governments create better rules for social media. 
  • Support digital citizenship by involving the public in the research. 
  • Make online spaces healthier for democratic debate. 

Learn more:

  • TWON Project Website
  • Micro TWONy: an interactive tool that shows what an algorithm does to your social media feed.
  • Ethics TWONy: should the tool that enables understanding the social media platforms be available for public or research only? 
  • Citizen labs: May 11-15, Vienna: Digital spaces are not neutral—they are designed. To redesign them for a better future, combination of talks, workshops and insights from experts joined debate with general public to foster digital citizenship and spark public dialogue about the future of Online Social Networks. 
  • 1st Workshop on Semantic Generative Agents on the Web (SemGenAge 2025): June 2, Portorož: the workshop explored the convergence of Semantic Web tech and Large Language Models (LLMs) to build more intelligent, interpretable, and communicative agents on the web 
  • Read the policy brief On Regulating Online Social Networks (TWON Policy Brief) (PDF)