The buzz this week around Bluesky, a new social media platform dubbed Twitter 2.0, has been intense. Prominent Twitter users such as New York Democrat Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and model and cookbook author Chrissy Teigen have joined. Thousands of others are begging invitations to it.
Some Twitter users have been looking for an alternative social platform since Elon Musk bought the company last year and then changed the service. Bluesky’s users say the app – which was funded by a Twitter founder, Jack Dorsey – is the closest to Twitter’s tone and feel.
Here’s what you need to know about it.
What is Bluesky?
Bluesky is a social network that offers many of the same core features as Twitter. Users can post short text and photo updates, comment on each other, and share other people’s posts.
The app, which is still in development, became available in February for iOS devices and this month for Android devices.
How is Bluesky different from Twitter?
Jay Graber, CEO of Bluesky, said in a blog post last month that it was no coincidence that the app resembled Twitter. But unlike Twitter, Bluesky plans to be a decentralized system, meaning people will eventually be able to build their own apps and communities in it. Ms. Graber said it was designed so that no one could set rules for the entire Bluesky community.
Bluesky also works with an ‘open protocol’. This is unusual because social media platforms have traditionally been walled gardens, meaning what is posted on individual platforms stays only on that platform. For example, your tweets will appear on Twitter and your photos will appear on Instagram, but they cannot be easily posted on those social networks.
But as Bluesky tries to be more open, it could one day allow messages to flow easily between different social media platforms.
Last month, a Bluesky user speculated that the app’s name stemmed from Mr. Dorsey’s desire to transform Twitter into an open protocol, releasing Twitter’s bird mascot into a blue sky. Mr. Dorsey replied, “Yes.”
How do you become a member of Bluesky?
With Bluesky still under development, it is currently available by invitation only. The app is building moderation tools before opening it up to the general public, Ms Graber said in a post on the platform last month. To sign up, people need an invite code from a current user.
Why has Bluesky become popular?
Since acquiring Twitter, Mr. Musk has changed the service by removing the restrictions around online speech on the platform and changing the verification procedures. Those have led to some confusion among users and an increase in misinformation and hate speech on the platform.
As a result, Twitter users have been trying out alternatives. In recent months, some have migrated to Mastodon, another decentralized social media platform that it says aims to be “a viable alternative to Twitter.”
Bluesky was originally limited to a small group of tech insiders. On Thursday, several prominent Twitter accounts and public figures – such as Ms. Ocasio Cortez, Ms. Teigen and the social media star Dril – joined the platform, creating a buzz around it.
Bluesky’s users seem to be having fun with the app’s similarities to Twitter, including calling posts on the app “skeet,” as a game of tweets. Even a plea from Ms Graber on Thursday for that name to be changed doesn’t seem to have deterred them.
Kate Konger reporting contributed.
