Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Meta, has introduced Threads, his new social media app, to rival Twitter. The app’s launch has been exceptionally successful, with a record-breaking 40 million downloads on its first day. Threads has proven to be a formidable competitor to other Twitter alternatives.
Within just 12 hours of its release, approximately 22 million users had signed up for the app, a remarkable feat for Meta, the parent company of social media giants like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. By the end of the day, the user count had reached 40 million, and it has since climbed to 83 million.
The popularity of Threads is rapidly growing, surpassing the 30 million user mark within 24 hours. In comparison, Instagram took 18 months and TikTok nearly two years to achieve the same milestone.
When comparing Threads to other major rivals of Twitter, such as Jack Dorsey’s BlueSky and Donald Trump’s Truth, the app clearly holds a significant advantage. BlueSky and Truth currently have 2.1 million and 2 million users, respectively, while Threads has surpassed both of them on its very first day. Undoubtedly, Meta’s app stands out as a much stronger contender against other Twitter alternatives.
Emerging as a robust competitor to Twitter, Threads has a long road ahead. Twitter boasts 330 million monthly active users, but experts believe that Threads has the potential to challenge the micro-blogging platform.
Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter resulted in several changes that garnered dissatisfaction among users. Meta intends to offer a Twitter-like experience, aiming to challenge Musk’s influence.
On Twitter, users are limited to 280 characters per post, whereas Threads allows up to 500 characters. Similar to Twitter, users can share links, photos, and short videos lasting up to 5 minutes. BlueSky and Truth offer character limits of 300 and 500, respectively.
Regarding other rivals on Twitter, Donald Trump launched Truth Social in response to his ban from the platform. However, this app failed to gain substantial popularity. Trump currently has only 5.5 million followers on Truth Social, with 2 million monthly active users, whereas his Twitter following amounts to 86 million. There are reports speculating that Trump may sell Truth Social in the near future.
Meanwhile, with the absence of Jack Dorsey’s BlueSky, Threads has been making steady progress. It will be intriguing to observe the app’s trajectory going forward.
Meta’s advantage lies in its expertise in running successful social media platforms. With WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook under its umbrella, Meta possesses the know-how to navigate the social media landscape. Moreover, the integration of Threads with Instagram has proven advantageous, leveraging the popularity of the widely used app and setting new records for downloads and sign-ups since its inception.
