One name has been building a perceptible stir in the domain of post-Twitter apps, and on a big Tuesday, it reached a huge milestone. Rose Wang, a major person in Bluesky's strategy and operations, turned to X, previously known as Twitter, to post an enthralling snapshot of this momentous occasion.
Bluesky made a deliberate decision to give access to their platform via a rigorously managed waitlist and exclusive invites from current users. This careful strategy guaranteed that the platform's developing community maintained an intimate and tightly-knit nature even as it launched on an unparalleled development trajectory.
While our earlier coverage highlighted Bluesky's spectacular rise to one million installs in July, it is now that we gladly announce the achievement of the one million user milestone. Wang astutely explained the gap in a message to TechCrunch on X, pointing out that a slew of people downloaded the app, outnumbering those with coveted invite codes. Bluesky's newest achievement represents not only downloads, but the genuine creation of accounts by a million people, not simply bystanders eager to grab the software.
In sharp contrast, Meta's own creation and Twitter rival, Threads, took a different strategy. The app saw a significant increase in sign-ups on its first day, thanks to Meta's strategic choice to cross-promote it within its large cohort of Instagram users. With an onboarding process as smooth as butter, it's no wonder that Threads racked up a whopping 30 million sign-ups in only 24 hours. It surpassed the desired 100 million milestone in only five days.
While Bluesky emanates persistent momentum among its few but ardent early users, Threads is at a less definite crossroads. The trajectory of the hundred million and more who joyfully started on this new digital trip in its early days may differ from that of its counterpart. Threads, which has seen a decline in user engagement, is at a crossroads, with the course of its cultural development unknown outside the constraints of its corporate identity.
Bluesky's own subculture quickly engraved its identity, in an interesting contrast to Threads. It serves as a colorful tribute to the distinctive fabric of online communities, with strange memes, intense and committed conversations, and an infectiously whimsical attraction.
Finally, Bluesky's remarkable climb to one million users is a tipping point in the post-Twitter app market. Its patient approach to community-building, in contrast to Threads' sudden debut into the digital sphere, creates a riveting story of two divergent pathways to success. As Bluesky's adventure unfolds, it will be interesting to witness how its own subculture shapes the digital world, leaving an enduring impression on the online community at large.
