BLUESKY is the latest social media platform that is set to rival existing channels.
The project was announced in 2019, and then blew up in popularity during the 2024 US Elections.
Bluesky aims to revolutionise the way personal data is handled on the internet.
The idea is that users don’t hand over control of their data to the platform’s creators.
Bluesky have created a social networking technology called the AT Protocol, making their app unique from others.
How Bluesky works
Bluesky is a social media platform where people can interact with one another.
Similar to X, users post, reply and message one another on a vertical user interface.
However, unlike its rival, Bluesky offers users the chance to more heavily moderate their experience.
This means those signing up have the ability to select the algorithm that drives what they see, which helps create custom feeds.
Bluesky also allows users to have website addresses as their handles.
Bluesky’s owner
The project was first announced on Twitter in 2019 by the former CEO, Jack Dorsey.
He wrote: “Twitter is funding a small independent team of up to five open source architects, engineers, and designers to develop an open and decentralized standard for social media.
“The goal is for Twitter to ultimately be a client of this standard.”
However, Bluesky became an independent company in 2021 and is now primarily owned by the chief executive, Jay Graber.
Becoming a hit
On November 15, 2024, Jay revealed the site had around 18 million users.
He posted that the platform is growing by 10,000 users every 10 to 15 minutes.
The platform has also benefited from some X users being unhappy with its billionaire owner, Elon Musk.
There was a spike in people switching from X to Bluesky due to Elon being closely tied to the US president-elect Donald Trump’s successful election campaign.
Star following
Since its launch, several high profile people have made the switch to Bluesky.
This includes the safeguarding minister, Jess Phillips, the Liberal Democrat technology spokesperson Layla Moran and Labour’s Diane Abbott.
Singer Lizzo has also got on board, as has TV presenter Chris Packham, comedian Dara Ó Briain and Countdown’s Susie Dent.
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