Jack Dorsey, co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, has launched a new social media platform called Bluesky. The micro-blogging platform, funded by Twitter, is currently available in the testing phase as an invite-only beta and will soon be available for public launch, according to TechCrunch. The Bluesky iOS app was released on February 17 and has seen around 2,000 installs during its testing phase. The app has a simplified user interface, where users can create a post of 256 characters by clicking on a plus button, which can also include photos.
Bluesky allows users to share, mute and block accounts, but advanced tools like adding accounts to lists are not yet available. The app’s discover tab offers more suggestions for “who to follow” and a feed of recently posted Bluesky updates. There are no DMs, but users can search for and follow other individuals, view their updates on a home timeline and view user profiles that contain a profile pic, background, bio and metrics.
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The Bluesky project originated in 2019 with Twitter, but the company was established as an independent company focused on decentralised social network research and development in 2022. In October 2021, Dorsey posted on Twitter that Bluesky intends to compete with any company trying to own the underlying fundamentals for social media or the data of the people using it.
Bluesky has received $13 million in funding, and Dorsey is on its board. The platform was created to research and develop technologies that enable open and decentralised public conversation. The company said, “It’s rare for a project to be set up like this. We’re using our freedom to focus on building and will work towards our vision of a durable protocol for public conversation no matter what happens”.
