Chapter “Just like home.” The Words of online hospitality

Abstract

In 2015, the Singa association created Calm (Comme à la maison "Just like home”), an internet platform for connecting refugees who are looking for housing with private individuals. The analysis of its archives and different versions provides information on both the expressions of online hospitality and the role of digital tools in facilitating hosting and accommodation. While this innovative interactive directory is based on state-of-the-art tools, it also challenges their limitations, namely the algorithmic temptation that its implementation may reflect, meaning the attempt to automate what is contained within the fluctuating realm of human relations.