The feud between Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter owner Elon Musk heated up on Wednesday after Meta officially launched its Twitter-like competition, a new platform called Threads.
The app, which gives users the ability to sync followers and profile information from their Instagram profiles, had over 30 million users sign up just one day after it launched, per Engadget.
Zuckerberg also confirmed that the platform had 5 million users just four hours after it launched.
“The vision for Threads is to create an option and friendly public space for conversation,” Zuckerberg said in a post on Threads on Wednesday. “We hope to take what Instagram does best and create a new experience around text, ideas, and discussing what’s on your mind.”
Threads posts have 500-character limits — Tweets have a 280-character limit, except for those who pay for Twitter Blue, the platform’s premium version — and can contain text, photos, and videos.
“Twitter never succeeded as much as I think it should have, and we want to do it differently,” Zuckerberg said Wednesday.
Upon the launch, Musk decided to take subtle jabs at the platform by laugh-reacting to several Tweets that made fun of Threads, including one that referred to Threads as a “special hell.”
Meta’s new app was built entirely using this keyboard: pic.twitter.com/RoRe6szEO0
— DogeDesigner (@cb_doge) July 6, 2023
It is infinitely preferable to be attacked by strangers on Twitter, than indulge in the false happiness of hide-the-pain Instagram
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 6, 2023
??
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 6, 2023
Zuckerberg also took to Twitter to post a meme, his first time actively using the platform in over a decade.
— Mark Zuckerberg (@finkd) July 6, 2023
The two have been squabbling in recent weeks after Musk decided to challenge Zuckerberg to a cage fight via social media.
The two reportedly set the location for Las Vegas, but the fight was quickly squashed.
So far, the platform has been receiving mixed reviews from users who ironically took to Twitter to give their opinions.
#Threads is basically crossover of Twitter and Instagram :/#ThreadsApp pic.twitter.com/AQ6zmVAFqH
— R✨ (@moonismywhore) July 6, 2023
When you realize how disappointing the #Threads UI is… ?♂️ pic.twitter.com/TgbXMBXTU7
— Defi Dobby ⚡️ (@DeFiDobby) July 6, 2023
Twitter is the only place where communicating our problems to each other makes things worse. This is probably why the #Threads logo looks identical to a tangled pipe. #ThreadsApp pic.twitter.com/JxsA6oM7AZ
— IMRAN KHAN (@imranmkkhan) July 6, 2023
Meta was up over 71% year over year as of Thursday morning.
