So, here’s the thing: The blue bird (app) has been struggling to fly straight. It has broken down more times than I ever did over the past months—and that’s saying something. I mean, who would’ve thought that Twitter (a.k.a. the virtual land of viral hot takes and witty comebacks) would become the digital poster child for dysfunction? It’s a shitshow of epic proportions—with each new update and policy change seemingly designed to piss us off.
Just recently, Twitter owner Elon Musk announced that they’ve temporarily limited the number of tweets each user can view daily to “address extreme levels of data scraping and system manipulation.” And in a separate tweet, he mentioned another reason: “We are all Twitter addicts and need to go outside. I’m doing a good deed for the world here.” (Alright, does he want a star stamp for that or something?)
Now, that leads us to Threads—the latest brainchild of Meta, the owner of Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp. It’s the alleged Twitter Killer™ that’s supposed to put an end to all the Twitter drama and provide the chronically online with a new platform to post unsolicited life updates (and grievances) on.
According to its official description on the App Store, Threads is “where communities come together to discuss everything, from the topics you care about today to what’ll be trending tomorrow.” It’s a text-based conversation app that allows you to “follow and connect with your favorite creators and others who love the same things—or build a loyal following of your own to share your ideas, opinions and creativity with the world.”
Screenshots from the App Store listing also shows that you can log in with your Instagram handle, find accounts you already follow there, and publish posts in a (strikingly) familiar text-based interface.
In short, Threads has “Twitter rival” written all over it in bold letters. It’s like Mark Zuckerberg saw the crisis his archnemesis has landed in and decided to capitalize on it by creating a potential alternative, which is coming sooner than you can get canceled for your unpopular opinions.
Let’s be real, though: Can Threads *actually* deliver? Sure, Twitter is a hot mess right now, but can we really trust Meta—the company that had its fair share of data privacy breaches and security issues—to get it right? (Case in point? The Facebook algorithm that shows you ads for things you talked about once in a Messenger group chat. Yup, real trustworthy.)
But hey, maybe I’m just being too pessimistic. Threads is expected to be available for download on July 6—and only then can we truly gauge its full potential. See you there… I guess?
Read more:
My two cents on the so-called Twitter alternative Mastodon
4 Chrome extensions if you need a *healthier* virtual life
It’s Lofi Girl—and Synthwave Boy’s—world, we’re just living in it
Art by Gaby Zayco
Photos from App Store