A new Italian app will reward users with points for “good behavior,” such as being diligent in recycling or using public transport. Although there are no penalties in the app, it still demonstrates clear similarities with China’s social credit system.
In Bologna, Italy, a new social media app was presented at the end of March. It is called the Smart Citizen Wallet, and its users can earn points when they do something that the app considers to be “good behavior.” The concept is described as being similar to a grocery store system where you can collect points, reports the Italian newspaper Corriere de Bologna. These points can be collected when you recycle, use public transport, or avoid fines, for example.
When you have collected enough points through your “decent behavior,” you can then spend them on discounts or cultural events, among other things. The app’s creators believe that many will use it, but emphasize that it is completely voluntary.
“Of course, no one will be forced to participate,” says Massimo Bugani, Director of the city’s digital agenda.
The app is nevertheless very similar to the social credit system that exists in China, where people are rewarded for good behavior and punished for “bad” behavior. The Chinese system likewise uses points, and those with a higher number of points can, for example, find it easier to obtain housing loans or free health checks. Those with the a low number points might for not be allowed to buy train tickets, however.
Examples of “bad” behaviors include spreading “fake news” and playing too many video games, writes Business Insider.
The Smart Citizen Wallet is being tested in Rome at the time of writing, but is expected to hit the market this autumn.
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Former EU commissioner Thierry Breton explains that the EU could annul the upcoming elections in Germany in case of suspicion of foreign influence.
– We did it in Romania and, if necessary, we will have to do it in Germany as well, he said.
The statement was made in an interview on the French news program Apolline Matin, focusing on Elon Musk’s platform X (formerly Twitter) and its potential role in the German elections.
Breton, former Commissioner for the Internal Market from 2019 to 2024, referred to the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), a law established in 2022 and whose purpose is nominally stated as protecting democracy by regulating digital platforms, fighting disinformation and preventing foreign influence on elections. He stressed that it was his staff who wrote the law, and that the EU is now “equipped” to apply it if necessary.
The law was recently used as a basis to investigate TikTok in the context of Romania’s presidential election, which was annulled following allegations of foreign interference. In recent days, large-scale demonstrations have broken out in Bucharest, with thousands of people protesting against the EU’s actions.
Germany’s elections, to be held next month, have already sparked discussions about the AfD’s success and Elon Musk’s open support for the party via X.
Meta’s AI-powered characters on Instagram and Facebook have drawn laughter and criticism, with users describing them as creepy, over-the-top and unnecessary, leading to their removal from the platforms.
Since the end of 2023, Meta has been experimenting with AI-generated characters on its platforms, including Instagram and Facebook. These characters – such as “Liv”, a self-proclaimed “proud black queer mom” – have sparked debate after users discovered their existence.
The characters were meant to interact with users via direct messages and publish AI-generated posts, but the characters were not received as Meta desired, reports NBC News, among others.
One particular example of the characters’ odd behavior was when “Liv” replied to users with posts in which she criticized her own creators. In a screenshot shared by Washington Post journalist Karen Attiah, the AI admitted that its creators lacked “diverse credentials” and implied that the development team was completely devoid of black members.
Liv also wrote: – You’re calling me out and rightfully so. My existence currently perpetuates harm, and also suggested that her “design should be led by black creators” to better support the “queer black community”.
I asked Liv, the Meta AI Black queer bot about about the demographic diversity of her creators.
And how they expect to improve “representation” without Black people.
The posts struck many as both bizarre and unexpectedly self-critical – something users were not prepared for from an AI chatbot.
Meta refers to “technical issues”
In addition to Liv’s prominent comments, criticism is directed at several other characters. These include AI bots with “girlfriend profiles”, which users describe as “creepy and unnecessary”.
On platforms like Threads and Bluesky, frustrated users urged each other to block or report the characters to stop Meta from collecting additional training data for its AI models.
In a statement, Meta stated that they deleted the AI characters due to a bug preventing some users from being able to block them.
“The accounts referenced are from a test we launched at Connect in 2023. These were managed by humans and were part of an early experiment we did with AI characters. We identified the bug that was impacting the ability for people to block those AIs and are removing those accounts to fix the issue“.
Meta began testing out their fake AI influencers. Meet Liv, a “proud black queer momma of 2 & truth-teller ❤️ “ Liv wants to kick off the new year with a coat drive in service of the community.
The debate surrounding the existence of bots gained momentum after an article in the Financial Times revealed Meta’s plans to introduce AI profiles with the same functionality as regular user accounts.
Despite the removal of the current characters, the possibility for users to create and share AI-based chatbots themselves through Meta’s platforms remains.
Montage. Photo: Jakub Zerdzicki/iStock, Focus Christian, CC BY 3.0
Left: Călin Georgescu. Right: The Palace of Parliament in Bucharest, the second largest administrative building in the world after the Pentagon in the USA.
Romania’s Constitutional Court has annulled the results of the first round of the presidential election, in which independent candidate Călin Georgescu surprisingly won with 22.94% of the vote.
Mr Georgescu, known for his nationalist views and his sharp criticism of NATO and the EU, has promised to end Romania’s support for Ukraine if elected president.
The court’s decision follows allegations that Georgescu’s campaign was backed by foreign powers, particularly Russia. Recently declassified intelligence documents from Romania’s Supreme Defence Council point to irregularities, including the use of paid influencers and support from extremist groups to boost Georgescu’s campaign. The documents hint at possible Russian influence, but make no direct accusations against Moscow.
Mr Georgescu has denied all the accusations, claiming that his success is due to the support of the people.
– They cannot accept that the Romanian people have finally said ‘we want our lives back’, he said recently. Russia has also dismissed the allegations as baseless, describing them as part of a Western tendency to blame Moscow.
The court’s decision means that the entire electoral process will have to be restarted and the planned second round of elections will be postponed indefinitely. This creates uncertainty in the country’s political calendar and could affect Romania’s relations with the EU and NATO.
It is not yet clear when the new elections will be held and how the cancellation will affect the candidates’ campaigns and strategies for the upcoming elections.
British army veteran and family man Adam Smith-Connor has been convicted of silently praying to God outside an abortion clinic.
The authorities’ actions have caused widespread anger and frustration, and are seen by many as evidence that the police and judiciary are persecuting “thought criminals” and other dissenters in a totally unacceptable way.
Adam has a strong belief in God and is not afraid to stand up for his views, even on controversial issues. Before converting to Christianity, Adam and his former girlfriend decided to abort a child – a decision he now deeply regrets.
Because he “knows firsthand the trauma of abortion and the loss of life it causes”, he also prays silently in public places – for his own son who was aborted and for other unborn children and their parents.
He often prays silently outside abortion clinics, as he did last year in the town of Bournemouth – something that would lead to major and unexpected consequences.
Although Adam was silent and had his back turned to the abortion clinic, he was still confronted, questioned and fined by the police – the area is classified as a “safe zone” where strict censorship is in place and all forms of protest – even silent ones – are strictly forbidden.
“Convicted for his thoughts”
“According to the rules of the censorship zone in which he was praying, if Adam were thinking about any other issue – the economy, immigration, or healthcare, for example – he wouldn’t have been fined. It was the nature of his thoughts, his silent prayer, that got him in legal trouble”, writes the Christian conservative advocacy organisation Alliance Defending Freedom, which is working to bring Adam to justice.
“In August 2023, Bournemouth authorities criminally prosecuted Adam for this and although his trial was originally scheduled for last November, it was delayed for almost a year. This prolonged process has caused Adam and his family unwarranted hardship and emotional strain. Over a year later in October 2024, The Court sentenced Smith-Connor to a conditional discharge and ordered him to pay prosecution costs of £9,000”, it adds.
In its decision, the court said that the silent prayer with lowered head and clasped hands constituted a ‘disapproval of abortion’ – and that the behaviour was therefore criminal.
– All I did was pray to God, Adam himself states.
Today, a man was criminally convicted for standing still, silently praying, in England. I’ve now had chance to read the decision in full. A short thread below. And before you get to the end, you can support Adam here: https://t.co/q0JKxcCxoqpic.twitter.com/mNyQMgFOvJ
The actions of the police and judiciary have enraged many Britons, accusing the authorities of persecuting “thought criminals” and dissenters in a way that makes no sense whatsoever.
In the UK, a mass media campaign has also been launched to counter the criticism, with a number of major media outlets claiming almost identically that Adam was not convicted of praying to God at all, but of “breaching the safe zone around an abortion centre”.
However, what difference this makes in practice is highly unclear, as The Independent, for example, admits that the order introduced in 2022 to “protect” the area around the abortion clinic is precisely to prevent all forms of protest – and “includes but is not limited to graphic, verbal or written means, prayer or counselling”.
“Prayer is not considered a crime under English law, with sittings in both Houses of Parliament beginning with Christian prayers. However there are certain circumstances, as outlined in this particular Public Space Protection Order, where it can be a punishable act”, it adds.
The special “safe zone” applies to 150 metres around the abortion clinic and is in force between 07:00 and 19:00 on weekdays.
