Twitter Cannot Hide from EU Rules after Exit from Code, Breton Says

FILED - 26 April 2022, Bavaria, Kempten: The logo of Twitter is seen on the display of a laptop. Photo: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH/dpa
FILED - 26 April 2022, Bavaria, Kempten: The logo of Twitter is seen on the display of a laptop. Photo: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH/dpa
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Twitter Cannot Hide from EU Rules after Exit from Code, Breton Says

FILED - 26 April 2022, Bavaria, Kempten: The logo of Twitter is seen on the display of a laptop. Photo: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH/dpa
FILED - 26 April 2022, Bavaria, Kempten: The logo of Twitter is seen on the display of a laptop. Photo: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH/dpa

Twitter cannot run away from its obligations even after quitting a voluntary EU code of practice to tackle disinformation, EU industry chief Thierry Breton warned the company late on Friday.

Companies which signed up to the code are required to provide regular progress reports with data on how much advertising revenue they had averted from disinformation actors.

They also have to provide information on the number or value of political advertisements accepted or rejected and instances of manipulative behaviors detected.

"Twitter leaves EU voluntary code of practice against disinformation. But obligations remain. You can run but you can't hide," Breton said in a tweet.

"Beyond voluntary commitments, fighting disinformation will be legal obligation under DSA as of August 25. Our teams will be ready for enforcement,” Reuters quoted him as saying.

Since Twitter was acquired by billionaire Elon Musk for $44 billion last October, the company has cut thousands of jobs and made numerous changes.

The Digital Services Act (DSA) obliges Twitter, Google, Meta Platforms Inc, Microsoft Corp, Alibaba's AliExpress and five other large online platforms to do more to tackle illegal online content.

Companies face fines of as much as 6% of their global turnover for violations.

Twitter, which no longer has a public relations department, responded to an emailed request for comment with a poop emoji.



China’s Xi Lauds AI Progress, Meets BRICs Bank on Shanghai Visit 

Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit, at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam, April 14, 2025. (Reuters)
Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit, at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam, April 14, 2025. (Reuters)
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China’s Xi Lauds AI Progress, Meets BRICs Bank on Shanghai Visit 

Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit, at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam, April 14, 2025. (Reuters)
Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives for a two-day state visit, at Hanoi's Noi Bai International Airport, Vietnam, April 14, 2025. (Reuters)

China's President Xi Jinping urged Shanghai to accelerate efforts to turn itself into a technological and innovation hub with global influence as he made his first visit to the city since November 2023, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Xi said that Shanghai, China's main international financial hub, should strive to be at the forefront of artificial intelligence (AI) development and governance, the report added.

The Shanghai visit comes at a time when the trade war with the United States has raised the stakes for global economic growth, and as China pushes forward with AI development in the wake of DeepSeek.

Xi urged the city to expand its exploration of AI models and said more supportive policies for the technology should be rolled out, as he visited an incubation lab for AI startups and tried on a set of smart glasses, the report said.

The Chinese president also visited the Shanghai-based New Development Bank, a multilateral bank of BRICS member nations, and met its president, former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, Xinhua said.