Faced with the drift of X, formerly Twitter, under the leadership of Elon Musk, alternatives are flourishing. Bluesky, a social network backed by former Twitter boss Jack Dorsey, is experiencing meteoric growth, welcoming a million new users in just 24 hours.
Bluesky takes advantage of the leak of X users
Bluesky, a social network presented as an alternative to X, has recorded impressive growth in recent days, announcing the arrival of a million new subscribers in a single day. “ It’s official – 1,000,000 people have joined Bluesky in the last day! Welcome and thank you for being here “, declared the platform in a message broadcast on its own pages and on X.
This wave of registrations comes as Elon Musk, owner of X since October 2022, is once again in the news. The billionaire, also head of Tesla and SpaceX, was appointed last week to head a “Government Efficiency Commission” by Donald Trump. By officially supporting the Republican candidate in his presidential campaign and relaxing X's moderation rules, Musk caused a real flight of users from the platform.
Changes made to X, such as the return of controversial accounts linked to far-right movements and the accusation of allowing disinformation to proliferate, have led several media outlets to leave the platform. The Guardian et The Vanguard announced that they would cease all publication on X, describing the network as “toxic”.
A race for alternatives with Bluesky and Threads in the lead
Initially created by Twitter under the aegis of Jack Dorsey, Bluesky was launched to the general public in early 2023. Now led by Jay Grabber, the network has experienced strong expansion. In September, it had ten million users, a figure that has grown to sixteen million today. This success is notably attributed to the growing dissatisfaction of X users.
But Bluesky is not alone in this battle. Threads, the competing platform launched by Meta in July 2023, also saw strong growth. According to Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, Threads welcomed more than fifteen million users in November and now has 275 million registered users.
The social media landscape is being reshaped under the impetus of Elon Musk's polarizing decisions. If Bluesky and Threads attract those disappointed with X, their challenge remains to transform this growth into lasting loyalty. One thing is certain: the platform wars have only just begun.
