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Paphos Embarks on EU Project to Revolutionize Tourism Sustainability

Paphos has partnered with nine other European regions to join the EU-supported Smart-Tour initiative. This venture aims to revolutionize digital and sustainable tourism, steering Paphos towards a visionary destination.

The 36-month endeavor involves the Paphos Regional Tourism Board (Etap) and emphasizes enhancing accessibility, digital transformation, environmental consciousness, cultural heritage, and creative industries. More about Cyprus’s strategic initiatives can be found here.

The project, dubbed ‘Smart Tourism – Smart Destinations’, seeks to embed digital solutions in local tourism policies, aspiring to elevate Europe’s tourism landscape.

This ambitious initiative provides essential infrastructure upgrades and the integration of smart tourism practices into regional strategies. With co-funding from the European Union, covering 80% of the costs, the program unites partners from Italy, France, Germany, Hungary, Greece, Romania, Albania, Ukraine, Belgium, and Cyprus.

Paphos anticipates receiving close to €200,000 in EU funding under this scheme.

The inaugural coordination meeting will occur in Heraklion, Crete, from May 20 to 22, with Etap Marketing Officer Lucas Nikiforos representing Paphos.

Explore Cyprus’s growth projections starting in 2025 here.

A New Twitter-Inspired Social Network Is Taking Shape

A new social network called Twitter.now is entering the market, with a founding team that includes former Twitter trademark counsel Stephen Coates. The service is being developed by startup Operation Bluebird.

As Ars Technica reported, X sued the company last year and asked a Delaware judge to block the launch. Operation Bluebird argued in a petition that X had abandoned trademarks including “Twitter” and “Tweet.”

Coates has said the project is not an attempt to recreate the original Twitter. In a LinkedIn post, he described the platform as a new public space focused on trust, transparency and user choice.

AI System To Rate Posts

Twitter.now is currently being tested, with early access priced at $20. Its main feature is VERA, an AI system designed to evaluate posts, verify claims and provide sources and context.

Posts receive a trust score, with users eventually able to set a minimum score to filter their feeds. The company says this approach will give people more control over what they see instead of leaving those decisions entirely to an algorithm.

Moderation Remains A Challenge

Scaling moderation will be one of the platform’s biggest tests. Social networks have repeatedly struggled with content moderation as their communities grow, and newer platforms such as Bluesky have faced similar criticism.

Operation Bluebird says VERA will form the basis of its moderation and verification system. A second version is already planned, with expanded tools that would let users set a specific trust threshold for the posts appearing in their feeds.

For now, Twitter.now remains in an early testing phase, combining the familiarity of the Twitter name with an AI-driven approach to evaluating online information.

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