The AI4TRUST project aims to combat misinformation and disinformation in the EU by creating a trust-based environment that integrates the automated monitoring of social and news media with advanced AI-based technologies to enhance the work of human fact-checkers.

The impact of disinformation on our society, at both individual and collective levels, is becoming increasingly apparent, particularly in areas such as public health and climate change. To combat disinformation effectively, it is crucial that we are able to quickly identify emerging signals of disinformation, such as unreliable sources and new narratives, especially on social media platforms. However, given the vast quantities of online content being produced, it is impossible for humans alone to monitor and analyse all platforms and sources. The production rate of disinformation is too high to keep up with, making it necessary to use AI-based technologies to combat advanced disinformation techniques. This is where AI4TRUST comes in, asa hybrid system that combines human and machine
intelligence to combat disinformation.

Our system will monitor numerous social media platforms in almost real-time, using novel AI algorithmsto analyse multimodal(text, audio, visual)andmultilingual content(en, fr, de, el, it, pl, es). It will flag any high-risk disinformation for expert review, and professional fact-checkers will periodically verify the facts and provide further updated information to our algorithms. Working together, we can create trustworthy reports customised to the needs of media professionals and policy makers. This will provide them with reliable information to prevent disinformation from spreading out of control.

The general objective of AI4TRUST project aimsto enhance the human-based response fortackling misinformation and disinformationacross the EU by empowering scientific researchers and media practitioners with advanced AI-based technologies that:

1. allow multichannel(distinct online social media and news feeds),multilingual(70% coverage of EU media/users)andmultimodal(textual, visual and audio content)monitoring,detectionandrecordingof misinformation and disinformation on online social media and traditional media;
2. estimate the risk of unreliable information consumption;
3. create a trustworthy online environment involving researchers, media practitioners and policy makers to facilitate the creation and distribution of reliable information and counternarratives, while labelling and countering mis/disinformation.

This will be done through the implementation of 7 Work Packages, each with their own focus on combating disinformation – utilising the multi-faceted skillset of Beneficiaries across Europe including Universities, Research Institutes in engineering and AI, and media.