By Threads, the social media application launched by Meta, the parent company of Instagram, has achieved a remarkable feat by surpassing 100 million users in less than five days. This achievement has set a new record, surpassing the previous record held by OpenAI’s ChatGPT app. Threads was made available on both Apple and Android app stores in 100 countries, including the United Kingdom, last Wednesday.
Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Meta, expressed his disbelief at the speed at which the milestone was reached. However, Threads encountered obstacles as it is currently not accessible in mainland Europe due to concerns regarding compliance with EU data privacy regulations. The EU’s industry commissioner, Thierry Breton, commented on the situation, stating that taking the necessary time to ensure compliance with regulations is a prudent approach.
Despite the challenges in the EU, Threads experienced rapid growth. Meta reported that the app garnered 10 million users within the first seven hours of its launch, and the number exceeded 30 million by Thursday morning. Just 24 hours later, the user base had more than doubled.
While Threads has made significant strides, it still has a considerable distance to cover to catch up to its main competitor, Twitter, which is believed to have 350 million users. Some Twitter users have become disillusioned since the takeover by billionaire Elon Musk. Twitter has undergone significant changes under Musk’s ownership, including layoffs and alterations aimed at boosting revenue. Other competitors, such as Mastodon and Bluesky, have struggled to gain traction without an established user base.
Threads has capitalized on its association with Instagram, which boasts over one billion users. Users who sign up for Threads will have a link to their profile displayed on their Instagram profile, although there is an option to hide this link. To join Threads, individuals must have an existing Instagram account. Deleting a Threads profile is only possible by deleting the associated Instagram profile, although deactivation of the Threads profile does not deactivate the Instagram account. Meta clarifies that deactivation will render the Threads profile, posts, and interactions with other users’ posts invisible.
Since Threads’ launch, Twitter has threatened legal action against its rival. A lawyer representing Twitter accused Mark Zuckerberg of engaging in “systematic, willful, and unlawful misappropriation of Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property” to develop Threads. Twitter alleges that Meta hired former employees who had access to Twitter’s trade secrets and highly confidential information, but Meta has denied these claims.
In terms of features, Threads allows users to post text of up to 500 characters, surpassing Twitter’s limit of 280 characters. Both applications enable users to share links, images, and videos, but they differ in terms of content restrictions. Threads prohibits nudity and explicit NSFW (not safe for work) images. Additionally, unlike Twitter, Threads does not have a desktop version available at this time.
