2026 might be the year we stop trusting Big Tech by default

27/01/2026

Over the past few days, and honestly weeks, I’ve been saving articles like crazy. And it’s only January 27. We’re 26 days into 2026 and it already feels like a full year happened.

A lot of it has nothing to do with apps, at least not directly. Trump and Greenland put Europe on edge again, and it even became a topic in Davos.[1] At the same time, Europe opened an investigation into Grok on X because of how easily it can generate sexual deepfakes and non-consensual nude images.[2] TikTok “solved” its US problem by creating a new US entity, but the whole thing shows how fragile these platforms are once politics turns.[3]

And then we get to the part that hits daily life for a lot of people: WhatsApp.

The European Commission has now officially designated WhatsApp as a Very Large Online Platform under the Digital Services Act, because Channels crossed the threshold in the EU.[4]

All these stories feel connected. The red wire for me is dependency. Europe is finally asking harder questions about what happens when the digital infrastructure we rely on is owned somewhere else, governed somewhere else, and can change overnight because of decisions we don’t control.

WhatsApp is being treated like infrastructure now

This designation is about Channels, not your private chats. But still, it matters. It’s Europe saying: if you operate at that scale, you don’t get to act like a simple messaging app anymore.[4]

And the timing is interesting, because while regulation is tightening, the business model is also shifting.

The “free” era is slowly ending

There are reports that WhatsApp is working on a paid subscription to remove ads, and that this would be an EU thing.[5] If that happens, I think you’ll see movement. Not everyone will switch, but more people will start looking around.

You can already feel it. Signal has been climbing hard this month. Signal themselves say they went number one in Denmark, then number one in Finland, and they also point to clear growth in the Netherlands.[6][7]

This is what I hope for. Not a perfect world where everyone leaves tomorrow. Just more people realizing they have options.

Even basic texting is improving again

Somewhere along the way, we all accepted that messaging meant WhatsApp. That always felt wrong.

RCS is not perfect, but it helps. The direction is that texting becomes “good enough” again, with richer features, and even end-to-end encryption moving closer via GSMA’s RCS work.[8] If basic messaging gets better again, it becomes easier to not default to one single app owned by one single company.

Bluesky is still the place that keeps me grounded

For news and information, Bluesky is still the app that works for me. Not because it’s flawless, but because it feels less like an attention trap. And they’re very clear about what they want to build in 2026, plus the bigger idea: the ecosystem of apps built on AT Protocol, what they call the Atmosphere.[9]

That ecosystem part is the key. Because when the protocol matters more than the app, you can move. You can try new clients. You can build new experiences. You’re not starting from zero every time.

Skylight is a good example. It’s a TikTok-style app built on AT Protocol, and it jumped to 380K users right after the TikTok US deal news.[10]

The European angle is getting real

This is the part I’m watching most closely.

Modal Foundation is basically saying: social media is infrastructure, and we need open social tech in the public interest. Their initial work centers on AT Protocol, and Eurosky is one of the projects they’re involved with.[11]

Eurosky is the project I keep coming back to because it’s concrete. European hosted, under European law, and built on AT Protocol.[12][13]

New Public also framed it in a way that stuck with me: the future of social media might be decided in Europe, but only if we actually build and fund the infrastructure layer, not just another app.[14]

Not every “European alternative” feels right though

There’s also this new project called W that was presented around Davos as a European alternative to X. Their approach is heavy identity verification, including passport or ID verification.[15]

I get the motivation, but that’s where I hesitate. Yes, bots are a problem. But building a public social network where everyone needs to hand over ID feels like the wrong trade-off. The internet should stay open.

At the same time, it’s obvious the identity conversation is coming back. The EU Digital Identity Wallet is moving forward, with the Commission saying wallets should be available across member states by the end of 2026.[16]

I’m not saying social media should require this. I’m just saying the topics are mixing now: identity, trust, governance, infrastructure. It’s all becoming part of the same debate.

My own small moves

Big Tech will not disappear in 2026. Most people will stay where their friends are.

But I do think we’re entering a new phase. One where quality matters more than growth hacks, and where more people are tired of AI slop and attention farming.

For my part, I’m experimenting more. I’ve been playing with Lemmy as a Reddit alternative. I still use Reddit for the communities, but I notice the algorithm keeps me stuck longer than I want. Lemmy feels calmer so far.

And I’m keeping a close eye on AT Protocol, Bluesky, and especially Eurosky. Not because it’s trendy. Because I want options that don’t depend on one CEO’s mood, one election cycle, or one business model pivot.

Slow changes. But real ones.

—

Sources

[1] Chatham House (Jan 22, 2026)
https://www.chathamhouse.org/2026/01/trumps-davos-speech-backed-escalation-greenland-will-not-prevent-eu-rush-strategic-autonomy

[2] AP News (Jan 26, 2026)
https://apnews.com/article/c1a3039e5aaeb4dd517d995b8b301537

[3] TechCrunch (Jan 23, 2026)
https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/23/tiktok-finalizes-deal-to-create-new-us-entity-and-avoid-ban/

[4] European Commission (Jan 26, 2026)
https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/commission-designates-whatsapp-very-large-online-platform-under-digital-services-act

[5] iCulture (Jan 26, 2026)
https://www.iculture.nl/nieuws/whatsapp-betaald-abonnement

[6] Signal blog (Jan 24, 2026)
https://aboutsignal.com/news/signal-popularity-soars-number-one-in-finland/

[7] Signal blog (Jan 23, 2026)
https://aboutsignal.com/news/signal-now-bigger-than-telegram-in-the-netherlands/

[8] GSMA (Mar 14, 2025)
https://www.gsma.com/newsroom/article/rcs-encryption-a-leap-towards-secure-and-interoperable-messaging/

[9] Bluesky blog (Jan 26, 2026)
https://bsky.social/about/blog/01-26-2026-whats-next-at-bluesky