A new social media platform backed by a climate-activism network was unveiled this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, pitching itself as a European, “values-based” alternative to X and explicitly targeting political institutions in Brussels.
The platform, called W, is a subsidiary of the Swedish climate-activism media group We Don’t Have Time, which has also provided much of its initial funding. Its launch presentation framed existing social media platforms as unreliable and prone to disinformation, positioning W as a corrective built around verification and content moderation guided by declared values.
W is led by CEO Anna Zeiter, who said the platform is intended to be “built, governed and hosted in Europe,” with full compliance with EU data protection rules. She said users would be required to verify that they are real people, with the stated aim of limiting bots and fake accounts, though the company has not yet explained how this verification would work in practice.
Beyond technical checks, content on W is also expected to be assessed against a set of norms promoting what the company describes as “positive, respectful communication.” A small internal group would oversee whether these values are upheld, although details of enforcement mechanisms have not been made public.
The company will be headquartered in Sweden, with offices planned in Berlin, Paris, London, and other European cities. Its board includes several high-profile figures, among them two former Swedish ministers, former German vice-chancellor Philipp Rösler, and Sandrine Dixson-Declève, chair of the Club of Rome.
The project has emerged amid growing calls from EU lawmakers for European alternatives to major U.S.-based social media platforms. In an open letter to the European Commission published earlier this year, Members of the European Parliament argued that Brussels should support or help finance private initiatives developing “European social media,” citing concerns over platform governance and regulation.
Zeiter made clear that W’s primary audience is political decision-makers, saying the platform would already count as a success if “political Brussels” were to post on W instead of X.
A beta version of the platform is expected to launch in the summer, with a full public rollout planned by the end of the year.
