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Massimo Flore

@massif.bsky.social
329 followers 198 following 275 posts

Exploring how information environments reshape power, legitimacy, and collective decision-making. Weekly insights → massimoflore.substack.com

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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Big Tech simply don't care about what governments and states consider dangerous. It's all about money. www.ft.com/content/5d6a...
ft.com
OpenAI and Google sell AI models to blacklisted China groups
US groups have been supplying AI services to Singapore-based subsidiaries of Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Far left party BSW proposed a coalition pact to neonazi AfD in Germany. They are United by their allegiance to Putin. Do you still think the horseshoe theory isn't real? Do you still believe Russia is not the primary threat to Europe? www.politico.eu/article/alli...
politico.eu
Germany’s populist left wants an anti-establishment pact with the far right
The AfD’s hopes for governing after state elections in eastern Germany may hinge on a left-wing party founded by a former communist.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Not surprised by any of this. 👇
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
It's unbelievable how trump's petty hatred against Obama destabilised the middle east, destroyed decades of diplomatic work, estranged historical allies, wasted billions of $, killed thousands, and made a rogue, oppressive, dangerous country stronger. www-cnbc-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.cnbc...
www-cnbc-com.cdn.ampproject.org
Trump hits back at critics as Iran peace deal fuels debate over U.S. concessions
The deal sees both sides commit to further talks to reach a final agreement over the next 60 days and includes a $300 billion plan for Iran's reconstruction.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Most reactions to Pope Leo XIV's Magnifica Humanitas seem trapped in the news cycle. Some see confirmation of their own views, or political targets. 📬 This week, Future Frontiers argues that the encyclical becomes intelligible when read on the Vatican's timescale. open.substack.com/pub/massimof...
open.substack.com
Reading Magnifica Humanitas Beyond the News Cycle
Why Pope Leo XIV's encyclical makes more sense on the Vatican's timescale
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
Lesson to America: this is what Biden and the democrats had not the courage to do in 2020. And now, everyone is paying the consequences. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
Hungary Seeks to Oust President in Purge of Orban Allies
Hungary plans to amend the constitution to oust the country’s president as Prime Minister Peter Magyar presses ahead with a plan to dismantle Viktor Orban’s regime.
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Reposted by Massimo Flore
War on the Rocks @warontherocks.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
China doesn't need to beat America's AI. It just needs to write the rules everyone else has to follow. warontherocks.com/2026/05/chin...
warontherocks.com
China's AI Governance Offensive Threatens U.S. Tech Leadership
China’s diplomats are on an “AI governance” offensive. At a May 5 United Nations meeting, China’s vice minister of science and technology championed
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
This is the inevitable result when incompetence meets arrogance. The Trump administration managed to destroy U.S. global hegemony in less than two years. It took decades to build, yet so little time to dismantle. www.foreignaffairs.com/united-state...
foreignaffairs.com
America Has Lost Its Leverage Over China
How Trump and Xi could cement Beijing’s advantage for years to come.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
Trump phone story is a peculiar one. In this instance, he is grifting his own most loyal supporters. It represents an unprecedented level of money grabbing, leaving U.S. institutions with a massive task to restore normalcy. If they survive. eu.usatoday.com/story/news/n...
eu.usatoday.com
What's the latest on the Trump phone? What we know
To order the Trump phone, customers must join a waitlist on the website and pay a $100 refundable deposit.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 02/05/2026
A new interpretability tool lets developers look inside LLMs and trace the circuits behind their answers, and even intervene. The interesting shift is here, we move from explaining outputs after the fact to shaping how they are produced. www.technologyreview.com/2026/04/30/1...
technologyreview.com
This startup’s new mechanistic interpretability tool lets you debug LLMs
Goodfire wants to make training AI models more like good old-fashioned software engineering.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Help me understand: China helps Iran targeting US bases with their satellites, but we cannot help Ukraine against Russia. The reason given is "russia nuclear weapons". What about US nuclear weapons? Are they less scary? www.ft.com/content/1fdd...
ft.com
Iran used Chinese spy satellite to target US bases
Leaked documents show IRGC secretly acquired system and used it to guide strikes during war in March
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
This looks like institutionalized post disinformation. Not just contesting results, but weakening the conditions that make outcomes binding. In 2020 institutions still closed the conflict. Now the risk is a system where closure no longer holds.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
There’s a crucial angle that’s rarely discussed: what is the U.S. Congress actually doing to protect NATO? Everyone is focused on Trump, but what are Democrats and Republicans doing to support the Alliance? Their silence speaks volumes. www.dw.com/en/trump-lea...
dw.com
Trump criticizes NATO over Iran in meeting with Rutte
President Donald Trump said NATO "wasn't there" after the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran. But NATO head Mark Rutte said "a large majority of European countries" lived up to their side of the deal.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 05/04/2026
I wonder how historians will cover this period of time in the future.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
Hybrid networks exploit vulnerable urban contexts, using low-skill actors, minimal costs, and online platforms like Snapchat. A pattern of outsourced, scalable micro-terrorism is emerging, changing how violence is organized. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
France Detains Two More Suspects After Foiled BofA Paris Bombing
French authorities detained two new suspects in connection with a foiled bombing near the Bank of America Corp. office in Paris, which officials have said is likely linked to the conflict in the Middl...
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
Iran’s information warfare and disinformation campaigns largely predated the current war. It was the best-kept open secret that everyone chose to ignore. www.nytimes.com/2026/03/28/b...
nytimes.com
In an Asymmetrical War, Iran Seeks an Edge With Its Information War
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
The informational ecosystem is becoming increasingly fluid, with boundaries dissolving. The rise of DAOs points to a deeper shift: the emergence of self-organized systems that can define and enforce their own rules, without relying on shared institutional authority. www.wired.com/story/a-dang...
wired.com
A Dangerous New Home for Online Extremism
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations, or DAOs, offer independently-minded internet users a safe haven—but it’s also a boon to those with a darker purpose.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
What’s striking here is that Fuentes is employing the same tactics Russia has used against Western democracies for the past 20 years. He knows that each side will only latch onto the parts of the message they agree with and dismiss the rest. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
theatlantic.com
How Nick Fuentes Is Charming the Left
Viral clips of the far-right white supremacist make him palatable to progressives.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
If relevance no longer accumulates in a stable way, then recognition becomes less reliable as a foundation. What worked yesterday does not extend into today. The system still registers the past, but it no longer translates it into durable position. 🔗
open.substack.com
The Creator Economy Wasn’t the Real Disruption
Why the shift from celebrities to creators was only the beginning, and what happens when nothing stays relevant long enough to matter
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 23/03/2026
We thought the shift from celebrities to creators explained how the media ecosystem works today. That is no longer enough. Relevance does not accumulate and hold as it once did, it is continuously recalculated. 🔗
open.substack.com
The Creator Economy Wasn’t the Real Disruption
Why the shift from celebrities to creators was only the beginning, and what happens when nothing stays relevant long enough to matter
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 22/03/2026
How should we treat FIMI when it comes from inside the EU? How should we treat EU governmente that directly cooperate with an hostile enemy country? www.washingtonpost.com/world/2026/0...
washingtonpost.com
To tilt Hungarian election, Russians proposed staging assassination attempt
To aid Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a friend of Russia, in his election, operatives proposed “the Gamechanger” — a staged assassination attempt to stir supporters.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
For centuries, producing knowledge required time. The effort of research, reading, and writing also created understanding. Generative AI changes that balance. Results can now appear before the reasoning behind them has fully settled in the mind. 🔗
open.substack.com
Producing Knowledge Faster Than Humans Can Understand It
Artificial intelligence is accelerating the production of ideas. Understanding them still takes time
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
When we read a book, the mind spends hours engaging with a single topic. Connections emerge, and ideas slowly reshape the way we think. AI can now produce analyses in seconds. The interesting question is what happens between those two speeds. 🔗
open.substack.com
Producing Knowledge Faster Than Humans Can Understand It
Artificial intelligence is accelerating the production of ideas. Understanding them still takes time
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
Generative AI can now produce analyses and structured arguments almost instantly. Human understanding still grows through slower cycles of reading, reflection, and connection. What happens when ideas appear before the mind has had time to absorb them?
open.substack.com
Producing Knowledge Faster Than Humans Can Understand It
Artificial intelligence is accelerating the production of ideas. Understanding them still takes time
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
Much of the debate on disinformation still assumes that manipulation spreads through public platforms. When people increasingly turn to conversational systems to interpret events, political influence can move from public feeds into private dialogue 🔗
open.substack.com
The Next Disinformation Battlefield Is Private
AI companions, synthetic friends and the rise of the epistemic cocoon
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Last week I presented the latest developments of my research on AI companions and disinformation. Synthetic friends raise uncomfortable questions about how influence works when it moves from public feeds into private conversations. 🔗
open.substack.com
The Next Disinformation Battlefield Is Private
AI companions, synthetic friends and the rise of the epistemic cocoon
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 28/02/2026
If Iran regime falls, Russia loses one of its key allies in the aggression against Ukraine.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
A new hybrid front Is opening on European western front. We should update the list of FIMI actors and start protecting citizens from disinformation narratives coming from where we did not expect.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
I think it's sadly time to expand the list of FIMI actors beyond Russia and China. www.ft.com/content/f869...
ft.com
US government to fund Maga-aligned think-tanks and charities in Europe
State department grants to spread ‘American values’ are part of Washington’s 250th anniversary celebrations
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
Hold on, this thing has a name... it was called co... col... colo... ah, I can't remember. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/28/u...
nytimes.com
Rubio Says Venezuela Will Submit Monthly Budget to White House
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
[surprised pikachu] www.ft.com/content/674b...
ft.com
Tech titans lined up for Trump’s second inauguration. Now they’re even richer
Silicon Valley bosses who lined up behind the US president for his inauguration have fared well under his administration
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 15/01/2026
Bitchat is a reminder of something we keep forgetting: the internet is not a switch, it’s a network. It was built to route around damage, even extreme disruption. You can shut down access points, but the network logic adapts. www.reuters.com/business/med...
reuters.com
Ugandans, Iranians turn to Dorsey's messaging app Bitchat in web crackdowns
A little-known offline messaging app launched by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has emerged as a key lifeline for Ugandans cut off from the internet ahead of a contentious election that could extend P...
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
I keep saying this: tech companies cannot be trusted with public health. Without oversight, they will always push boundaries in their own interest. mashable.com/article/goog...
mashable.com
Google changes key parental control setting in wake of high-profile criticism
Teens will now need to get explicit permission to remove a parental supervision setting.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
Strong analogy, but the damage goes deeper. In markets, broken contracts create instability. In politics, broken contracts erase obligation. Trump isn’t just extracting value from politics, he’s showing that political commitments no longer bind.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 30/12/2025
What if the core democratic challenge today isn’t fixing information, but preserving the ability to decide together under conditions of permanent disagreement? The last Future Frontiers issue of 2025 is a reflection on orientation, not prediction.
open.substack.com
Reading the World With Outdated Maps
What happens when disagreement no longer turns into collective decisions
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 29/12/2025
We talk a lot about misinformation and polarization. But 2025 revealed many of the frameworks we still rely on no longer help societies translate disagreement into shared decisions. 📬 This is the last issue of Future Frontiers for 2025. See you next year!
open.substack.com
Reading the World With Outdated Maps
What happens when disagreement no longer turns into collective decisions
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 25/12/2025
The so-called “global censorship-industrial complex” is a tiny world of academics and NGOs, journalists, and disinformation researchers who for the last decade have been trying to understand the power and reach of the tech platforms and how they are invisibly manipulating our information spaces.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
We are in a post-disinformation phase where the core problem is no longer false content, but the collapse of shared standards for knowledge and collective action. This matters for security too. I connect these dots in this week’s Future Frontiers.
open.substack.com
America’s 2025 Security Strategy and the End of the Post-Cold War Illusion
A twenty-year shift that reshapes alliances, fractures the global order, and leaves Europe without a strategic compass.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
The US willingness to act alone is not new. What’s new is the reason behind it. Democratic values once justified unilateral action; today they are treated as constraints. 📬 This week in Future Frontiers, I try to explain why that matters, especially for Europe.
open.substack.com
America’s 2025 Security Strategy and the End of the Post-Cold War Illusion
A twenty-year shift that reshapes alliances, fractures the global order, and leaves Europe without a strategic compass.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
When Merz says the “American peace” as Europeans knew it is over, he’s pointing to a long shift, not a sudden break. 📬 This week in Future Frontiers, I look at how US security thinking evolved from post-9/11 universalism to today’s far narrower logic. open.substack.com/pub/massimof...
open.substack.com
America’s 2025 Security Strategy and the End of the Post-Cold War Illusion
A twenty-year shift that reshapes alliances, fractures the global order, and leaves Europe without a strategic compass.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
I wrote about the strange sensation of knowing more while understanding less, and how this shapes the future of journalism. The piece is less a verdict and more an open question. How do we build shared reality in a fragmented information climate.
open.substack.com
Journalism in a World Without Common Bearings
News flows endlessly while meaning struggles to take form.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
Media debates often ask how to fix newsrooms or regulate platforms, but what if the real crisis is that stories no longer stay. This week Future Frontiers reflects on journalism as a space where orientation might still be built.
open.substack.com
Journalism in a World Without Common Bearings
News flows endlessly while meaning struggles to take form.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 08/12/2025
Sometimes it feels like we are living inside an information climate rather than an information system. 📬 This week Future Frontiers explores what happens when journalism can no longer guarantee a shared foundation for public understanding. open.substack.com/pub/massimof...
open.substack.com
Journalism in a World Without Common Bearings
News flows endlessly while meaning struggles to take form.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
That's what a russian asset would do. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
US Urged Europeans to Oppose EU Plan for Loan to Support Ukraine
The US lobbied several countries in the European Union in an effort to block EU plans to use frozen Russian central bank assets to back a massive loan to Ukraine, according to European diplomats famil...
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 04/12/2025
The real challenge today is not the volume of information but the pathway it follows through our minds. This week in Future frontiers I look at how attention and identity now guide the first steps of understanding.
open.substack.com
The Attention Trap: How Platforms Shape What We Think Before We Notice
The digital feed reverses the ancient order of persuasion, turning emotion and identity into the first gateway to understanding.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 03/12/2025
Hey, but what about Hunter and his laptop? www.ft.com/content/952f...
ft.com
Donald Trump Jr-backed start-up scores $600mn US federal government deal
President’s son’s fund 1789 Capital poised to capitalise from father’s administration
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
I have been thinking about how attention works today. Not the usual story of distraction, but the deeper shift in how ideas reach us. Emotion sets the tone, identity frames the reaction and reasoning negotiates what remains.
open.substack.com
The Attention Trap: How Platforms Shape What We Think Before We Notice
The digital feed reverses the ancient order of persuasion, turning emotion and identity into the first gateway to understanding.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
I keep returning to the idea that the feed does not only show us things. It sets the order in which we feel, align and only later think. 📬 This week in Future Frontiers a piece about this quiet shift in public understanding. open.substack.com/pub/massimof...
open.substack.com
The Attention Trap: How Platforms Shape What We Think Before We Notice
The digital feed reverses the ancient order of persuasion, turning emotion and identity into the first gateway to understanding.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 30/11/2025
Russia’s move in Armenia follows a tested script. Undermine an independent government, flood the infosphere, then escalate when soft pressure fails. Georgia showed the pattern. So did Ukraine. The goal remains a return to old borders. www.dw.com/en/russias-d...
dw.com
Russia's disinformation campaign in Armenia gains momentum – DW – 11/30/2025
Russia is ramping up a disinformation campaign aimed at undermining Armenia's West-leaning government ahead of a parliamentary election in June 2026.
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Massimo Flore @massif.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
And Remigration, a common political stance from the far-right, linked to the conspiracy theory of the "Great Replacement", enters once more into governments' policies. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
Trump Demands ‘Reverse Migration’ in Push for Sweeping Crackdown
President Donald Trump called for “reverse migration” in the US as he outlined a further crackdown on immigration following the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington.
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