Volkswacht Bodensee - French researchers aim to ease X refugees' path with 'HelloQuitX'

The developers are betting on a campaign urging users to dump X on January 20, the day of Musk ally Donald Trump's inauguration as US president, to drive usage of the service -- dubbed "HelloQuitX" in a play on the name of Japanese cartoon cat Hello Kitty.

Institutions, politicians and celebrities from around the world have left X in dribs and drabs in the weeks since Trump was re-elected in November.

They include the horror novelist Stephen King, British left-wing newspaper The Guardian and, as of Thursday, French infectious disease centre the Institut Pasteur.

But "many users are trapped on X by their audience," said David Chavalarias, a mathematician at France's CNRS public research body.

"Some can't bring themselves to leave for fear of losing their sources or their following."

He and a team of around 30 people decided to develop HelloQuitX to offer a way for people to bring large chunks of their networks with them when they leave, cushioning the blow of starting afresh elsewhere.

- Transfer -

Users are invited to transfer the lists of people they follow and their followers from X to Bluesky or Mastodon.

The two newer social networks are seen as "more compatible with privacy and freedom of speech", according to the HelloQuitX developers.

Even with help from the app, users must go through a multi-step process that begins with requesting their personal data from X -- which the platform can take up to two days to deliver -- before uploading it to HelloQuitX.

The CNRS promises to delete everyone's personal information once it has been migrated.

Chavalarias said that more than 5,000 people and organisations had signed up in the first week of the service going live.

"There's always effort involved in switching platforms," said Jakob Juenger, a communication researcher at Muenster University in Germany.

"You always run the risk that you won't find the same content" on the new network, he pointed out -- making the French initiative a "very interesting" attempt to palliate this effect.

"X is dangerous because the online service is endangering democracy," said Juenger.

- 'Factory for divisions' -

Chavalarias, author of "Toxic Data: How social networks manipulate our opinions", argued that far-right and other "toxic" content has significantly increased on X since Musk took ownership in 2022.

The network "has become a factory for divisions", he said, echoing the findings of several recent studies finding right-wing content's visibility has surged on the platforms, while the reach of left-leaning posts has declined.

"HelloQuitX" is not the first attempt to organise a mass exodus from the platform.

Several waves of people have already left, including after Musk's takeover and following Trump's reelection.

The HelloQuitX team picked the date of the Republican's inauguration to highlight the link between the two billionaires.

Musk has been named to head a "Department of Government Efficiency" in the incoming administration.

Since the US poll, Musk has devoted dozens of messages to attacking European leaders including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

The South Africa-born tycoon has thrown his weight behind far-right individuals and movements, especially the Alternative for Germany (AfD) running second in opinion polls in the run-up to elections on February 23.

Musk has batted away allegations that he is spreading false information and failing to adequately moderate content.

Instead, he portrays himself as a radical free speech supporter rejecting all forms of censorship.

Musk's model appears to have inspired Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg, who last week made far-reaching changes to moderation and fact-checking policies.

Critics have warned the update marks a backwards step for efforts to counter hate speech or protect minorities from harassment.

Chavalarias speculated that the Facebook owner's shift could lead to a new digital mass migration.

"Facebook would be a next step if its ideological turn continues," he said.

J.Sauter--VB