The social social network.

In short: Because of January 20, 2025.

The image of Trump’s inauguration, where he had the entire tech elite gathered behind him and Elon Musk raised his right arm, wouldn’t leave us alone—and wouldn’t let us rest. With the tech bros in the front row, it became clear that TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Amazon, X, and the like are no longer neutral tech companies, but rather monopolies supported by the new President of the United States.

And somehow, while everyone was talking about how Europe needed an independent and safe social network, especially for adolescents, no one seemed to be doing anything. To escape that feeling of helplessness, we had to take action.

Since the inauguration, new horror stories have been pouring in from the U.S. every day, and the need for digital sovereignty in Europe seems more urgent than ever. The momentum is there, and we want to seize it.

The truth is also that right now, no one is really happy with social media.

First and foremost, children and teenagers, who spend an average of four hours a day on “social” networks. According to a study by Ruhr University Bochum, one in two young people in Germany shows symptoms of social media addiction. This is no coincidence or oversight, but part of Big Tech’s business model. Through addictive and toxic algorithms, autoplay, and infinite scrolling, young people are systematically overwhelmed – and the consequences, such as depression, anxiety, and sleep or eating disorders, are simply accepted.

Parents are just as overwhelmed and can hardly protect their children due to a lack of transparency on these platforms. Most are not even able to navigate social media’s “dark patterns” themselves and are also heavy social media users.

Social media is also far from being merely a source of inspiration and entertainment. Increasingly, social media platforms are public spaces where people—many exclusively—get their information, where topics are discussed, agendas are set, and political opinion is formed. This space must be curated, and discourse must follow established rules to protect our democracy. With a healthy, balanced algorithm, we want to help ensure that the voice of the center is heard again. We also want to help democratic media regain visibility and offer monetization opportunities.

Well, we’ve certainly set our sights high. But as the saying goes: There is nothing good unless you do it.

At first, anyone can sign up on the platform with their email address and view content. But anyone who wants to interact—that is, post, like, or comment—must verify their identity. This makes sense because it allows us to prevent bots from influencing the platform, curb fake accounts, and ensure significantly greater safety and respectful interaction among users. Anyone who spreads fake news, hate speech, or other destructive content, harasses others, or sends unwanted messages can be blocked and, if necessary, reported to the authorities.

The verification process is strictly GDPR-compliant. For verification, we have entered into a contract with the German company WebID, which securely hosts personal data on a European server in accordance with the highest data protection standards. WebID is not compelled to disclose data under the US CLOUD Act. If you have further questions, please visit the website of our verification provider.

The mandatory verification for all active users sets us apart from all other social networks and makes wedium a significantly safer place where netiquette can actually be enforced. And it’s not that unusual, really: in the real world, adults are always required to carry their ID with them.

Because Europe and democracy are very important to us, we spare no expense and, above all, no effort to create wedium—a thoroughly European product that is not subject to the U.S. CLOUD Act in any way.

DNS Server: Bunny.net (Slovenia)
Server: Hetzner (Germany)
Verification: WebID (Germany)
Email server: Mittwald (Germany)
Email provider: Rapidmail (Germany)

Not only is our platform hosted in Europe, but the underlying code is also purely European and tailor-made by our team led by our CTO and full-stack developer Andreas Hacker (yes, that’s his real name). So we don’t rely on the AT protocol; instead, we have 100% European and self-sufficient code.

Looking ahead, we plan to use advertising revenue to monetize creators, host our platform in Europe, improve existing features, and develop new ones. We also generate revenue through the freemium model. Users who want to enjoy the platform without ads pay a monthly fee of €8.99.

We. Because we are intrinsically motivated and not just another young startup looking for a quick exit or a quick buck. As parents, we founders want greater safety for our children in the digital space. As advocates for democracy, we want to work toward restoring a balanced political discourse on social media. As politically engaged individuals, we want to actively shape our future.

We realize that promises alone aren’t enough (Google once advertised with the slogan “Don’t be evil”; where did that go, anyway?). We want to secure our purpose and our goals even beyond a potential exit, e.g., with a golden share model, in which shares are transferred to a foundation that, through its ownership stake, receives a veto right and ensures that the impact is preserved.

No, we deliberately decided against an open-source solution, especially after Trump used Mastodon’s code for his Truth Social. On top of that, the Fediverse offers no way to monetize. No one can make money there, which makes it unattractive to media outlets, brands, and creators. That’s why it can’t scale. We want to build a platform that can stand up to the big tech companies—and that’s only possible if we make the platform attractive to a wide range of stakeholders.

We actually have two algorithms, since we have a “For me” page and a “For we” page. On the “For we” page, you’ll find posts from your friends and people you follow, or posts that these people comment on, like, or share. This is where we foster community and connection. On the “For me” page, you’ll see content that might also interest you.

You set the preferences, and only you can change them.

It’s important to us that our algorithms are clearly distinct from the addictive and toxic algorithms of mainstream platforms. Our algorithms are interest-based, but “healthy.” They neither promote extremes nor distort the discourse.

To create such a healthy algorithm—which is an ongoing task—we seek guidance from our Advisory Board and Ethics Council, which includes media experts and a youth protection expert, among others.

In the community guidelines, which all users agree to upon registration, we explain that moderation is not meant to be a tool of power, but rather a way of shaping the community. This platform thrives on us treating one another as human beings. And certain rules are simply essential for a healthy community.

Our moderation team acts in a transparent and proportionate manner.

The possible steps are explained in our netiquette:

• Warning or friendly reminder
  Caution
• Temporary restriction
• Temporary suspension
• Permanent suspension for serious or repeated violations

If necessary, there is an opportunity for clarification or appeal.

In addition, we plan to integrate a GDPR-compliant (and, of course, European) AI that can pre-filter content and detect harmful material. When the time comes, we will transparently explain how this AI works.

We are convinced that machines cannot replace humans in a field as sensitive as communication. And we don’t want them to. After all, wedium is meant to be a space for genuine human interaction.

Bots already account for over 50% of conversations on standard social media platforms. Bots don’t have an ID, so we can identify them right at the entrance. This means they can view content but cannot interact. This is how we encourage conversation between real people.

We’ve defined clear rules for haters and trolls in our netiquette guidelines. From there, we proceed in clear steps:

• Warning or friendly reminder
  Caution
• Temporary restriction
• Temporary suspension
• Permanent suspension for serious or repeated violations

Unlike all other platforms where an email address is sufficient for registration, these troublemakers cannot log in again.

If you are still a minor, you can only be registered by a parent or guardian using their ID or linked to their account. At the same time, you will only be shown age-appropriate content. Your parents will have some insight into your browsing activity.

Minors will not be able to use the platform until our official launch in summer 2026.

We will determine the exact age restrictions and other details at a later date.

No, you can use a nickname. For underage users and people who, for example, live in dictatorships or for other reasons must remain untraceable and need to protect themselves, we strongly recommend keeping your real name private.

To truly compete with the major American and Chinese platforms, wedium must be attractive to creators and influencers. Only through monetization can we take creators, influencers, users, customers, and businesses away from Big Tech on a large scale.

We also know quite a bit about advertising. Four of our founders work at a communications agency with “good clients,” including the State of Berlin, Diakonie, Caritas, and AWO, which are committed to social cohesion, the common good, child protection, environmental protection, and more, and want to recruit suitable employees, spread their message, and network online. At some point, we didn’t even know which platform to recommend to them anymore. None seemed to align with their own mission. Now we know what to advise: Run your ads on wedium.

On wedium, anyone can be a creator and earn money—even starting with their very first post. To make this possible, we’ll be sharing half of our advertising revenue with you in the future.

Payments are made according to a transparent process. We’ve developed a points system for this: As a creator, you can start earning points—called wedium points—from your very first like. The value of these points is determined at the end of a specific period—the value of the wedium points varies depending on how high the advertising revenue was.

You can report a user using the “Report User” feature.

Our Community Guidelines, which all users agree to upon registration, outline how we handle violations of the Code of Conduct. Depending on the severity of the violation, a multi-step process is applied, ranging from a warning or notice to temporary restrictions and up to permanent account suspension.

We reserve the right to delete an account immediately. Behavior that constitutes a criminal offense will be reported to the authorities without delay.

To support and assist users who have been victims of inappropriate behavior, we will establish a support system where trained individuals are available to provide information about available options.