Mashable: Bluesky is on the verge of overtaking Threads in all the ways that matter

[Dennis Donovan]

Mashable - Bluesky is on the verge of overtaking Threads in all the ways that matter

Meta-owned Threads started November with 5 times the daily app users of Bluesky. That number is now down to just 1.5.

By Chance Townsend on November 23, 2024



Bluesky, the formerly Jack Dorsey-affiliated, decentralized answer to Elon Musk's X is closing the gap with Threads at breakneck speed. The browser version of Bluesky surpassed Threads in total usage weeks ago, but now the Bluesky app has exploded to 3.5 million daily active users, putting it just 1.5 times behind Meta’s Threads — an impressive feat considering the Threads app had 5x Bluesky's active users at the start of the month.

The momentum shift has been nothing short of seismic, especially in the wake of the November 5 election. According to Similarweb data reported by the Financial Times, Bluesky’s user base has ballooned by 300 percent since Election Day. Journalists, academics, and companies are fleeing Elon Musk’s chaotic X (formerly Twitter) in droves, and Bluesky is quickly becoming their platform of choice.

Why Bluesky over Threads? Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s decision to downplay political content on Threads appears to have turned off many users seeking vibrant public discourse. Critics see it as an attempt to stay in President-elect Donald Trump’s good graces, effectively neutering the platform’s potential as a forum for political and cultural debate.

Bluesky has quickly become the go-to platform for what commentator Max Read has called the "Politically Engaged Email Job Blob" — the same cohort that helped transform early Twitter into the cultural juggernaut it once was.

/snip

[Karasu]

1. Threads is just more Meta/Zuckerberg trash and I personally have no idea what anyone sees in it.

Like all Meta shit, there's no actual accountability for anything. On Bluesky, people have much more control over the users/content they see. There's a reason conservatives hate it.

[orwell]

2. I can confirm...

...Bluesky is addicting.

Where else can I converse with Jon Cryer, Marc Elias, Emptywheel, Mueller She Wrote, and AOC on the same day?

Screw Xitter. Dump the Chump. Bye Bye Broman Empire!

[Aussie105]

3. The good thing is we now have so many choices

when it comes to social media, you can pick one that suits you.

X can think it has a captive audience, but they'd be wrong!

[swong19104]

4. I was asked to join instagram

And by joining instagram, I get Threads as well. Usually, the second or third post on instagram is a thread link. Pointless drivel. The posts on Threads are just so inane. “Name 7 things you like about NYC,” or similar questions.

[FakeNoose]

5. I don't care about Threads, but I want to see X driven out of business as soon as possible

[orangecrush]

6. Opened my Bluesky account today

And downloaded the app.

I really like it, reminds me much of DU.

[mucholderthandirt]

8. I signed up about a week ago, but no app for me. Desktop or it's dead to me.

Mainly because I don't put apps on my phone. Hate that shit. My sister used to borrow my phone, drug addict crazy that she is, and would put FB on it so she could run out my minutes making dope deals. F*ck that.

I think I can tolerate Bluesky, since there seems to be ways to knock the stupid people off (block them, baby, block them). I'm following John Scalzi and Mark Hamill only at the moment, until I find others I like. I'm not interested in only political stuff.

[orangecrush]

10. Cool

Same here, I have other interests, which will be a sanity saver over the next 4 years.

[quakerboy]

7. the time for this was several years ago

It's a little late now.


If we'd all dumped Twitter after musk made his intentions known.. it would have died on the vine. Without lefties, information and entertainment would be gone, so centrists would ditch the platform, and cons mainly go to troll and misinform, so they'd have ditched too.

[Rebl2]

9. I signed

up for blue sky, but every time I try to sign in it says I have the wrong password. I checked and double checked my password and then changed my password and it still says it’s wrong. In the end I gave up on it.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

11. Marc Elias has a great starter pack for bluesky

I am on bluesky and followed most of the posters on Marc's starter pack

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