As data has proliferated, it has become impossible for people to analyze it directly. Content aggregators are software tools that sort information streams, giving a human operator an overview that would otherwise be impossible. They exist in virtually every sector.
Founded in 2021, the start-up Datapolitics specializes in politics, with the aim of putting data science at the service of public debate. Using algorithms, its aggregator Hedwige—named after Hedwig, the owl in Joanne Rowling's "Harry Potter" series—provides data to support investigations. Hedwige draws on quantitative information such as opinion polls, but it also analyzes language in speeches and statements by political figures posted on social media.
Antoine Bacalu and Hugues de Mazancourt founded the project. Antoine is an engineer who knows coding inside out. Using his array of tools, he adds to the machine that produces analyses and visuals for use in public debate. Hugues, meanwhile, has thirty years' experience in natural language processing. In other words, he has devoted himself to enabling computers to understand human language. This expertise is vital if Hedwige is to assess political discourse and gauge the mood of public debate on social media.
The two partners have three objectives:
