MIT researchers reported on Oct. 29 a system called Social.Wiki that lets users without coding expertise create and edit social web applications, with each user selecting which edits by others they see. The work was described in a paper by lead author Theia Henderson, a graduate student in electrical engineering and computer science, and senior author David Karger, a professor in the same department and a member of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory.

The researchers said the platform handles back-end work and uses a decentralized infrastructure in which users retain ownership of their data. A "data guard" prompts users to review requests from applications seeking access to their data. Under what the researchers call "plural governance," users set rules determining which edits appear, rather than a central moderator deciding.

The system was evaluated through case studies, including a messaging platform and a ride-sharing app with a fare calculator, and a sponsored hackathon. The researchers said Social.Wiki remains in its early days and that they plan to refine it as they deploy it to a wider audience. The paper was scheduled for presentation at the ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology in November. The work was funded in part by Schmidt Sciences and the National Science Foundation.