The European Commission has asked X to hand over internal documents about its algorithms, as it steps up its investigation into whether Elon Musk’s social media platform has breached EU rules on content moderation.
The EU’s executive branch told the company it wanted to see internal documentation about its “recommender system”, which makes content suggestions to users, and any recent changes made to it, by 15 February.
X has been under investigation since December 2023 under the EU’s content law – known as the Digital Services Act (DSA) – over how it tackles the spread of illegal content and information manipulation. The company has been accused of manipulating the platform’s systems to give far-right posts and politicians greater visibility over other political groups.
The EU has come under growing pressure in recent weeks to take action after a series of interventions by Musk into European politics. Musk, who will be a part of Donald Trump’s incoming administration in the US, has angered many on the continent with a series of attacks on its leaders, as well as expressions of support for Germany’s far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party.
“Today we are taking further steps to shed light on the compliance of X’s recommender systems with the obligations under the DSA,” the EU digital commissioner, Henna Virkkunen, said in a statement.
The commission played down reports earlier this week that it was reviewing its investigations against big tech companies, stressing that they were continuing as normal and the US president-elect, Donald Trump’s return to the White House did not affect its commitment to enforcing its laws.
Virkkunen implied that the EU would not hesitate to use the powers it had to either ban or fine X if it was found to be in breach of the DSA. “We are committed to ensuring that every platform operating in the EU respects our legislation, which aims to make the online environment fair, safe and democratic for all European citizens,” she said.
Some European politicians have accused Musk of meddling in elections, such as with his streamed conversation with Alice Weidel, the leader of the AfD, earlier this month. The commission has said Musk is free to speak his mind and can hold live streams with politicians but is assessing whether algorithms boost a single narrative and “shadow-ban” other views, posing a risk to fair elections.
Musk has said the criticism is an affront to democracy and free speech.
