Bluesky – Jack Dorsey’s “decentralized” Twitter hits the App Store in private beta
Twitter users will soon be able to switch to the decentralized social network Bluesky, which began its closed beta testing on Tuesday by publishing an iOS app in the App Store. Former Twitter CEO and founder Jack Dorsey is the mastermind behind Bluesky. After Elon Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion last October, Dorsey announced that he intends to focus on the new social network.
Bluesky was conceptualized as a “decentralized social network” in 2019 as an extension of Twitter, but later spun off to become a separate platform. The company announced its independent existence early last year, writing on Twitter:
“Both Twitter and Bluesky realized that our independence is important to the success of the project, which is why we established an independent company to ensure that we serve the broadest possible interests.”
The beta version of the app is downloadable from the App Store by invitation only, and users interested in joining can submit their email addresses to be put on a waiting list.
According to TechCrunch, Bluesky’s interface is similar to Twitter with small differences, such as a text box instead of “What’s happening?” the question “What’s up” appears. There is a plus button to add 256 characters with the option to add photos. It is also reported that users will be able to view updates on the main feed, which is divided into posts and posts & replies.