Meta's Twitter Competitor, Threads, Is Already Live For Some

Threads, the Instagram-born answer to Twitter from Meta, is already live on the web. The app, which is scheduled for a July 6 release for mobile platforms, is an Instagram off-shoot that focuses on text-heavy conversations and community-building, just like Twitter. Ahead of the public launch, Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram boss Adam Mosseri have already started posting "threads" from their accounts on the web to get the hype mill buzzing.

In addition to Meta's top execs, access to Threads has also opened for corporate accounts like Netflix, as well as influencers like Gary Vaynerchuk. App developer Alessandro Paluzzi has tweeted a list of influential personalities that already have functional Threads accounts with a healthy few hundred followers since the testing began months ago.

According to Insider, Meta started testing Threads on an invite-only basis via the App Store's TestFlight program among a selected bunch of high-profile Instagram accounts. Notably, the app's APK was also leaked and circulated on Reddit soon after the app appeared on the Play Store. I installed the package and it only takes me as far as the splash screen, but returns an error on the login page.

Threads aims to offer a replacement for Twitter, but at the same time, it also wants to leverage the billions of users that it already has on Instagram so that it's easier to find and connect with your online acquaintances. When you first launch the app, it will log in directly via your Instagram account. That also means you also get to keep the same username on Threads as you have on Instagram.

To make the account discovery process easier, the Threads app will show a list of all the accounts you follow on Instagram, with a corresponding follow button for each one. It looks like the blue verified badges will carry over from Instagram and appear on the linked Threads account, as well.

As far as UI goes, you get interaction controls such as like, repost, comment, and share. Unlike Twitter, there is no bookmarking button visible. It's somewhat odd, as Instagram offers a dedicated Save button below each post on the mobile app, but Threads doesn't offer a similar option.

Minor UI differences aside, the whole approach shamelessly apes the fundamental social media formula that Twitter is currently struggling to maintain. Of course, users will also be able to spice up their Threads commentary with media, but that's not really a fresh idea by comparison.