33. UpScrolled Founder & CEO Issam Hijazi on the Future of Digital Platforms

Issam Hijazi is a Palestinian-Jordanian-Australian technologist and the founder and CEO of UpScrolled, a social media platform meant to give users a greater degree of personal control over their online experiences and interactions, free from dictatorial algorithms. With professional experience at IBM, Oracle, and Hitachi, Hijazi founded UpScrolled in direct response to concerns over censorship and the covert suppression, or “shadow-banning,” of pro-Palestinian content on major social media platforms. UpScrolled has pledged never to covertly suppress content, functioning as an independent alternative to algorithm-driven social media. Since its launch, the platform has reportedly grown to 5 million users. Hijazi has since emerged as a prominent and necessary voice in the global technology conversation and was an opening-night keynote speaker at the 2026 Web Summit in Doha. Tune in to the Utopias podcast for a conversation between Hijazi and Professor Ramesh Srinivasan on social media, censorship, free expression, technology, and the future of independent digital platforms.Follow UpScrolled on X, Instagram, LinkedIn, and their website. Follow Ramesh on Instagram, TikTok, Bluesky, X, YouTube, LinkedIn, and on his website. Questions or comments? Email [email protected].