Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, has launched a new social media platform called Bluesky. The new app, currently in the testing phase, is available to download for iOS users via Apple's App Store. The Twitter-funded microblogging platform is available as an invite-only beta as of now, and a public launch is expected to be announced soon.
Bluesky made its iOS debut on February 17 and has seen around 2,000 downloads so far, as per data.ai, as first reported by TechCrunch. It is still not known when Bluesky will see a public launch.
How does Bluesky work?
By the looks of it, Bluesky looks and behaves similar to Twitter — at least for now. With a UI design resembling that of Twitter, Bluesky lets you post messages within 256 characters. Users can also upload photos with their posts.
Bluesky will allow users to mute, block accounts, and also share posts. There is a 'Discover' tab at the bottom, which can throw up suggestions such as which accounts to follow, and posts from other accounts on the platform as well. This works similarly to the 'Explore' tab of Instagram.
Notably, Bluesky doesn't allow users to send private DMs to each other yet.
Just like Twitter, users can upload profile and background photos, bio, and metrics.
Dorsey previously described Bluesky as "an open decentralised standard for social media." While the project originated in 2019, Bluesky was officially established as an independent firm focussing on the research and development of decentralized social network in 2022.
Bluesky last year received $13 million in funding with Dorsey on its board. Bluesky was formed to research and develop technologies that enable open and decentralised public conversation. "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," said the company.
(With inputs from IANS)