Threads, the new “Twitter Killer” app from Meta that was launched on Thursday, now has 50 million users — just over 24 hours since the app was rolled out. The text-based microblogging service is closely tied to Meta’s popular photo and video sharing service, Instagram. While the brisk rise of Threads is impressive, it is worth noting that Meta is using its user base of over 2.35 billion active users on Instagram to get users to sign up for Threads. Meanwhile, rival Twitter has already begun to feel the heat, with the recently appointed CEO issuing a statement, while the service has reportedly threatened to sue Meta.
On Friday, The Verge’s Alex Heath stated in a Threads post that the app had surpassed 48 million user registrations, citing internal data from Meta. Another Threads user, Joe Scannell (Threads: @joe_scannel), posted a screenshot of a recent Threads sign-up number that showed the figure has now crossed the 50 million mark. As part of Meta’s push to get users to sign up and use the service, it displays a serial number on the Instagram profile of each user — indicating when they signed up for the service.
Threads is the top app on the App Store in India and other countries including the US
It’s worth noting that while Threads was launched on the App Store and Google Play store simultaneously on Thursday, the app isn’t available in every country. Meta hasn’t rolled out the service to users in the EU, presumably due to stringent privacy regulations in the region.
The app has risen to the top of app stores in multiple countries — in India, the top free apps on iOS are Threads, followed by WhatsApp and Instagram. The Threads app reportedly rose to the fifth position in the App Store in China, where Meta’s other apps are currently blocked — Threads is expected to meet the same fate.
As of Thursday, the Threads app had over 95 million posts and which had garnered a total of 190 million likes on the platform, The Verge reported. It appears that Elon Musk’s Twitter has begun to feel the heat. The platform has reportedly threatened Meta with legal action in a letter sent by Twitter’s lawyer Alex Spirt to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
On Twitter, everyone’s voice matters.
Whether you’re here to watch history unfold, discover REAL-TIME information all over the world, share your opinions, or learn about others — on Twitter YOU can be real.
YOU built the Twitter community. 🙏👏 And that’s irreplaceable. This…
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayacc) July 6, 2023
Meanwhile, Twitter’s new CEO Linda Yaccarino tweeted on Thursday after the meteoric rise of the new Threads app, stating that the Twitter community was built by users and that it was “irreplaceable”. “We’re often imitated — but the Twitter community can never be duplicated,” she added.
Threads’ user base is expected to grow over the coming day, but the service currently lacks features that users are accustomed to on other platforms, such as the ability to see a chronological feed or the ability to send private messages (or DMs). Meanwhile, the company’s support documents state that you cannot delete your Threads account without deleting your Instagram account — showing how closely the two are linked.
