Former President Trump’s social media app Truth Social remains unavailable for many, despite promises that it would be "fully operational" in the U.S. by Thursday.
Why it matters: Trump fans flooded into a SPAC that agreed to take Truth Social public and could lose their investments if the app doesn't get its act together.
- The SPAC is said to be under federal investigation and Thursday missed a filing deadline because of what it said were accounting delays.
- Shares of that SPAC are down 35% since March 4, and down 64% from their all-time high, including a 2% dip on Friday.
Behind the scenes: Sources tell Axios that tech issues are likely what's preventing the app from being released to all interested users.
Details: When Truth Social first appeared in Apple's App Store, it told people to expect a Feb. 21 launch date. But, when Presidents Day hit, prospective users were given waitlist numbers that, for many, still haven't changed.
- Truth Social CEO and former Rep. Devin Nunes subsequently said the goal was for the app to be "fully operational" by the end of March.
- It didn't happen.
- There have been some indications of progress, including Trump's adult sons beginning to use the service this week, and Trump's account gaining over 800,000 users. But Trump himself hasn't posted a message since before the original launch date.
The intrigue: As far as Axios can tell, no Trump loyalists seem to be involved in Truth Social, and instead are focusing on building their own tech platforms.
