Bluesky, Twitter's new rival, debuts with an invite-only iOS app

• Bluesky, the new rival of Twitter, has made its debut as an invite-only iOS app.
• The design of Bluesky closely resembles Twitter, as it emerged from a Twitter spin-out company and runs on a decentralized protocol known as Authenticated Transfer.
• Bluesky's simple user interface allows for creating posts of up to 256 characters, and the app includes basic features such as a discover tab and notifications.

With the introduction of his new platform Bluesky, Jack Dorsey, the co-founder, and former CEO of Twitter, has returned with a new social media platform. The invite-only social network Bluesky, which emerged from Twitter as a decentralized project, has recently become available on the App Store. You’ll need to search for Bluesky social to find the app.

The screenshots displayed on the listing resemble Twitter in numerous ways, including the circular profile pictures, follower and following counts, and bold account names with grey handles.

Bluesky - a decentralized social media platform

It's not surprising that Bluesky's design is reminiscent of Twitter, given that it originated from a Twitter spin-out company of the same name. In 2019, then-CEO of Twitter, Jack Dorsey, disclosed the Bluesky team's intention to develop a decentralized social media protocol known as Authenticated Transfer. This protocol would allow various social media networks to interact with one another, and the Bluesky app runs on this protocol.

The Bluesky project was launched in 2019 while Jack Dorsey was still CEO of Twitter. Twitter has been providing financial backing to Bluesky for several years. Although the project was initiated before Elon Musk acquired Twitter, the two executives had discussed the concept of an open-source protocol via text messages just before the acquisition.

Bluesky: Expected features

According to the shared screenshot, Bluesky has a simple user interface that enables users to effortlessly create posts of up to 256 characters and images by clicking on a plus icon within the app. While Twitter focuses on ‘What is happening?’, Bluesky takes a more casual approach with the question ‘What's up?’. The app offers a range of basic tools, such as sharing, muting, and blocking accounts. However, more advanced features, such as creating lists, are not yet available.

The discover tab in the middle of the navigation menu is a valuable resource that suggests ‘who to follow’ and displays recently posted updates. Similar to those on Twitter, notifications enable users to view likes, reposts, follows, and replies. However, Bluesky currently does not provide a direct messaging feature.

Users can search for and follow others on Bluesky and view their updates in a Home timeline. User profiles on the platform include a profile picture, background, bio, and metrics similar to those on Twitter.

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