it may be a choice between two evils.

features not available in Threads currently include DMs, language translation, the ability to edit posts and the ability to easily switch among multiple accounts.

No ability to search posts:

That may give users pause about adopting Threads.

“the priority is the mobile apps, but we are working on” the web version.

Threads could be set to see only followed accounts, said it’s “on the list” for future enhancements.

Out of the gate, this seemed to be the biggest issue users called out.

other Twitter wannabe

It’s obviously early days.

That sounds like a big number, but it represents less than 1.5% of Instagram’s 2 billion-plus monthly active users.

which looks quite a lot like a clone of Twitter?

5 Ways Instagram’s New App Comes Up Short

Meta has been inviting major celebrities to join an early version of the app. Already, big names like Malala Yousafzai, Shakira, and Gordon Ramsay have used it, Meta confirmed.

For Threads to get that same effect, it will need those culture starters who can make compelling short, 500-character posts.

underlying trust in its parent company, which has faced controversy about how it handles user data since the Cambridge Analytica scandal of 2018.

Threads posts be visible on other apps like Mastodon or Wordpress, or vice versa, and have users comment on posts across the apps. And if you decided to stop using Threads altogether, you would hypothetically be able to port all your content over into a new app.

Many users have complained about Twitter’s “For You” feed showing them too much content from random users they don’t want to see, and that they miss the old-school default-chronological feed on Twitter.

which you can now pay for

This is one of Threads’ biggest advantages over other Twitter replacement apps: Over 2 billion people already have a built-in social network on Instagram, so unlike with, say, Mastodon, you don’t have to completely recreate your follower base from scratch.

sn’t ready yet, according to Meta

a very different approach than Twitter, which has been limiting free API access to third-party developers.

Twitter gives you the option to toggle between an algorithmic and chronological-based feed of only people you follow

with some minor differences

while the iron is hot

Mastodon and Bluesky, none have grown to surpass Twitter’s popularity with a critical mass of politically and culturally influential figures.

limiting the number of tweets people can read, a questionable business decision that was widely unpopular with users

ready — desperate even — for a solid Twitter replacement

And it looks a lot like Twitter. Which is exactly the point.

Twitter alternative

Meta announced last fall that Instagram had surpassed 2 billion monthly active users

The launch of Threads comes as Musk’s Twitter has faced technical struggles of late.

That said, it’s not clear how many Instagrammers will flock to Threads,

Right now, the app doesn’t include a direct-messaging feature.

By launching Threads through Instagram, the new app has a leg up on other would-be Twitter alternatives.

its frontal attack on Twitter

will not initially be available

has an extensive history of trying to stamp out social media rivals, partly by copying their features.

is that Instagram wants to make it easier for Threads to operate seamlessly with other platforms

Instagram Notes, where people can share short messages on the site, and a text-focused app using Instagram’s technology.

began its effort to take on Twitter late last year, with dozens of engineers, product managers and designers pitching ideas on what a rival app could look like

“not just because of the ownership, but because of product changes and decisions” that Mr. Musk and others made to how the social platform works.

Mr. Mosseri added, especially at a tumultuous moment in the social media landscape.

As part of that effort, he said, Threads was spun out into a separate app. That way, Instagram would not be too cluttered by trying to make public conversations work inside its existing app.

It does not currently support direct messaging, a feature that Twitter offers. Instagram said it may add features to Threads if new users ask for them.

Threads looks nearly identical to Twitter in many ways.

He later said that Threads achieved 10 million sign-ups within seven hours of its launch.

But Threads has a leg up, backed by Meta’s deep pockets and Instagram’s enormous user base of more than two billion monthly active users around the world.

changed the experience of Twitter by tinkering with its algorithm and other features, and most recently imposed temporary limits

The rollout of Threads ramps up the rivalry between Mr. Zuckerberg and Elon Musk

with some techies referring to it as a “Twitter killer.”

If Instagram executives get their way

could have a real-time capability to launch different pages on Threads that could support different stores and have conversations relating to that specific location.

something Twitter seems to grapple with.

But, the data transfer from Instagram to Threads has limited the company’s release in the EU

Threads will import all the data from Instagram, including behavioral and advertising information, such as health and fitness data, financial information, browsing history and sensitive information.

Meta is actively courting creators and celebrities to the platform,

Threads will be compatible with other apps like Mastodon and is being made available in the U.S. and the U.K.

“Twitter is severely wounded and Meta’s Threads could deliver another major blow,” said Insider Intelligence principal analyst,

Advertisers have been lukewarm about Threads given Meta’s history of data collection practices.

“delete Twitter account” saw a staggering surge of 292% in the U.S. and 131% worldwide on July 1, compared to the previous seven days

Twitter began limiting the number of tweets people can view per day to deter third parties from scraping data off the platform

Threads bears a striking resemblance to Twitter, featuring the ability to create content threads, restrict responses, and add images.

More than five million users signed up in the first four hours.

that there are “tons of basics” missing, including hashtags and direct messaging between users. “Full disclosure, it’ll take time.”

Threads is in its early days, however, and much depends on user feedback

The rollout of new features will also be key.

could be a significant headache for Musk and Twitter.

watchers point to Meta’s track record of starting standalone apps that were later shut down — including an Instagram messaging app also called “Threads” that shut down less than two years after its 2019 launch

Success for Threads is far from guaranteed.

Meta informed Ireland’s Data Privacy Commission, Meta’s main privacy regulator for the EU, that it has no plans yet to launch Threads in the 27-nation bloc, commission spokesman Graham Doyle said.

The similarities of Meta’s new text-based app suggests that the company is working to directly challenge Twitter

seemingly appeared to address Threads’ launch in a Thursday tweet

The Twitter owner responded to one tweet suggesting that Meta’s app was built largely through the use of the copy and paste function, with a laughing emoji.

Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property by hiring former Twitter employees to create a “copycat” app.

“one reason why Twitter never succeeded as much as I think it should have, and we want to do it differently.”

“Threads” can run up to 500 characters — compared with Twitter’s 280-character threshold

“the long term nature of threads is what’s going to ultimately predict its success or failure.”

“That’s one of the reasons why Threads got over 10 million people to sign up in just a seven hour period” after launching.

According to Threads’ supplemental privacy policy, you can deactivate your profile at any time, “but your Threads profile can only be deleted by deleting your Instagram account.”

But Meta’s new app has also raised data privacy concerns, and is notably unavailable in the European Union.

arrives at a time when many are looking for Twitter alternatives to escape Elon Musk’s raucous oversight

celebrities like Oprah, pop star Shakira and chef Gordon Ramsay — as well as corporate accounts from Taco Bell, Netflix, Spotify, the Washington Post and other media outlets.

30 million people had signed up before noon on Thursday, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Threads

Despite some early glitches

Meta’s new Twitter rival

Despite its early success, Threads remains a relatively bare bones app. It’s still missing many of the features users like about Twitter, such as a desktop version, direct messaging, trending topics and the option to edit posts.

For Zuckerberg, though, the real draw may be in attempting to best his rival, Musk, with whom he has in recent weeks been making plans to engage in a cage fight. Perhaps winning in the battle of social networks is even better.

after Meta laid off more than 20,000 workers starting last November, including user experience, well-being, policy and risk analytics employees.

In particular, Meta will have to work to prevent spam, harassment, conspiracy theories and false claims on Threads, issues that have caused many users to sour on Twitter.

challenge for new social media platforms often is not getting users to sign up, but rather keeping them engaged long-term.

Threads makes it remarkably easy for users to get started.

“We’re often imitated — but the Twitter community can never be duplicated,” she said.

a lawyer representing Twitter sent a letter to Meta alleging intellectual property theft and threatening a lawsuit over Threads.

“Twitter has had the opportunity do this but hasn’t nailed it. Hopefully we will.”

Meta has at least one significant leg up on Twitter

Threads is just the latest platform

can collect about users, including location, contacts, search history, browsing history, contact info and more, according to the Apple App Store.

“your Threads profile can only be deleted by deleting your Instagram account.”

Similar to Twitter

But Twitter has become particularly vulnerable in recent days, angering users over a temporary limit on how much content users can view each day.

faced backlash since Elon Musk took over the platform in October 2022

Threads could pose a serious threat to Twitter

Threads was the top free app on Apple’s App Store and a top trending topic on Twitter.

and some questioning whether the app could end up being the “Twitter killer.”

officially launched its Twitter competitor

‘Twitter Killer’

“The vision for Threads is to create an option and friendly public space for conversation,” Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a Threads post following the launch.

The platform looks a lot like Twitter, with a feed of largely text-based posts — although users can also post photos and videos — where people can have real-time conversations.

already off to a strong start: it received 100 million sign-ups

Twitter’s traffic has been on a downward trend in recent months, with CloudFlare CEO Matthew Prince posting to say traffic is “tanking.”

That said, Threads is still in its infancy, and we’ll have to wait and see if it captures the same cultural cachet that Twitter once did.

Users aren’t just signing up: they’re posting, too.

confirming the milestone that the growth was “mostly organic:”

The number of users can be found in the Instagram app, which tracks the size of the Threads userbase.

OpenAI’s chatbot passed the mark after two months, but Threads, which only launched on Wednesday

It handily beat ChatGPT to the milestone while Twitter traffic is ‘tanking,’ according to Cloudflare CEO.

Over the last several weeks, multiple sources have reported that Apple will team up with a partner,

Bloomberg reiterates that iOS 18 will be “the most ambitious overhaul of the iPhone’s software in its history.”

Vision Pro will hit the mainland China market this year,

The company has innovated

celebrates 70 years