Mark Zuckerberg has launched Threads, a new app designed to rival Twitter and Elon Musk, but users are already mocking it.
Described as a text-based version of Instagram, Threads provides real-time updates and facilitates public conversations. The app went live late Wednesday in Apple and Google Android app stores.
However, some Twitter users shared GIFs suggesting that people would quickly abandon Threads and return to Twitter. Some users highlighted bugs and lack of features, while others mocked the app.
Despite some initial glitches, the app gained significant attention, attracting over 10 million sign-ups within the first seven hours of its launch.
Threads has been made available in more than 100 countries and has already attracted celebrity users and media outlets.
Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, said he is determined to create a friendly and distinct environment on Threads, setting it apart from Twitter. The app allows users to engage with posts through features such as liking, reposting, and replying.
He stated that one of the reasons why Twitter didn't succeed as much as he thinks it should have is because it lacked a friendly environment.
Zuckerberg said in some early replies on Threads that he's focused on making the app “a friendly place”, which will “ultimately be the key to its success”.
“That's one reason why Twitter never succeeded as much as I think it should have, and we want to do it differently,” he wrote.
Celebrities like chef Gordon Ramsay, pop star Shakira, and actor Jack Black, joined Threads on its launch, as well as accounts from various media outlets, including Airbnb, Guinness World Records, Netflix, and Vogue magazine.
Gordon Ramsay wrote, "Is this where I find the lamb sauce??" playfully questioning the app's purpose or functionality.
On Threads, there are buttons to like, repost, reply to or quote a thread, and users see the number of likes and replies that a post has received.
Posts are limited to 500 characters, which is more than Twitter's 280-character threshold, and can include links, photos and videos up to five minutes long.
Despite that, Meta said its "vision is that Threads will be a new app more focused on text and dialogue, modelled after what Instagram has done for photo and video."
Instagram users will be able to log in with their existing usernames and follow the same accounts on the new app. New users will have to set up an Instagram account.
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However, concerns about privacy have been raised due to Threads' data collection practices. As a result, the app is not being launched in the European Union, where strict data privacy rules are in place.
While the success of Threads remains uncertain, Meta faces challenges in maintaining multiple standalone apps. Additionally, the rivalry between Meta and Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter, continues.
Threads could be a fresh headache for Musk, who acquired Twitter last year for $44 billion. With Threads posing a challenge to Musk's platform, the competition between the two companies remains ongoing.
Musk has made a series of changes that have triggered a backlash, the latest being daily limits on the number of tweets people can view to try to stop unauthorised scraping of potentially valuable data. He also is now requiring paid verification for users to access the online dashboard TweetDeck.
His rivalry with Zuckerberg could end up spilling over into real life. In an online exchange, the two tech billionaires seemingly agreed to a cage match face-off, though it’s unclear if they will actually make it to the ring.
