X , formerly have it off as Twitter , has been mired in controversy almost since it came into being , but that seems to have give young height during theElon Musk earned run average . Regardless of where you stomach on X ’s current province , it ’s vindicated that a large number of people are looking for a new home plate , and thefledgling societal medium site Blueskyhas becomeone of the top rival . Over 1 million U.S. users joined Bluesky in the week succeed the reelection of Donald Trump as United States President in November 2024,helping it get over the 15 million user thresholdand climb up to the top of the App Store chart . sign up for the new social media platform used to be on an invite - only basis , but the liquidation of invites helped make the move from X to Bluesky a caboodle easier for everybody .
But what exactly is Bluesky and how can you sign on up for it ? Here ’s an explainer of exactly what you’re able to expect from the newfangled Twitter clon , Bluesky .
What is Bluesky?
Unless you’rereallyplugged into tech news program , you may not have heard the name “ Bluesky ” until last class . Created fromparts of hug drug in 2019 , it did n’t hire its first employees or become an independent company until 2021 . It finally began garnering public attending when it relinquish an iOS app in February 2023 . Since then , it ’s slowly been picking up adhesive friction as a potential X choice , and with the expiration of an Android app in April 2023 , it ’s lead off getting some genuine recognition .
One of the main difference is how Bluesky is structured . Rather than ingest a central server where all posts are collated , Bluesky works a little more like another X alternative , Mastodon . Like Mastodon , Bluesky is decentralized — meaning there is n’t a exclusive central waiter under the control of Bluesky . Instead , there are many separate server , each with its own temperance principle and curation . While there ’s still an official Bluesky Social host that anyone can bring together , there ’s an expectation that user will branch off into their own networks , which Bluesky call in “ applications ” .
Sound perplexing ? It is n’t too complex , though a lot can be said for Bluesky keeping this particular constituent quiet for the moment , asconfusion over the waiter systemcan be a significant barrier to entry for manyMastodon neophyte .
gratefully , Bluesky makes it gentle . If the estimate of separate app and decentralized net make your head word swim — and you would n’t be alone there — then just contract up for Bluesky Social meshwork .
Is Bluesky legit?
Bluesky was co - found by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey , so it ’s about as legitimate as you may get . Interestingly , Bluesky seems to be Dorsey ’s second thrust at getting the Twitter / X convention right . Dorsey hasspoken about his declination over Twitter ( now X ) , and those regrets center largely around the centralised nature of the platform , and the fact that it eventually ended up as a caller at all .
Dorsey sees societal mass medium at its most utter with Bluesky . Rather than being run as a company with easing principles , he want to put power back into the hands of the the great unwashed . While Bluesky operates its own host , there ’s an emphasis on user - run servers , taking power away from Bluesky as a caller and place it into the manus of separate easing teams . look at X ’s troubles over the year with message moderation , this could be a smart move from Dorsey — though there ’s been somehistorical pushback on that possibility .
The bottom line is yes , Bluesky is a legitimate social connection . However , that only mean you should treat it with as much trust as you would unremarkably treat social networks — and that ’s a personal determination that ’s proceed to be unlike for everyone .
Is Bluesky owned by X?
The brusque result is “ no , ” but there ’s more to this story than just that . Initially , Bluesky was “ spun out ” from X in 2019 . In business organization term , a“spinout”is when a company moves portion of its asset into a new one before it ’s launched and run for as a new caller in its own right . So while Bluesky may have begin life story as part of X , it has since beenfully divide from its parent company .
Bluesky share a lot of other similarities with X. As mentioned , XTC founder Dorsey is involve in the company , as was previous cristal CEO Parag Agrawal . But even with those strong golf links , Bluesky is fully freestanding from Musk ’s X and certainly is n’t owned by X.
Is Bluesky available for Android and iPhone?
Yes , the Bluesky app is usable properly now on both Android and iPhone . you could findBluesky on the Google Play StoreandBluesky Social on the Apple App Store .
When Bluesky was come up as a contender to replace cristal alongside Threads , Mastodon and Hive last year , you needed an invite code to get in . If you did n’t get an invite computer code , you would have to enquire your friends , who would conduct three invite codes at a metre — and you would be prosperous to get one of them . Today , ask in codes are no longer required to create a Bluesky history since it ’s out of the beta phase . Just produce an account and you ’re all set .
What makes Bluesky special?
In scant , Bluesky places ascendance of word feeds in the work force of users , not in the hand of the company . provide exploiter to curate feed to see mental object they love from people they follow while blocking the people they do n’t travel along for their own safety — all while not siloing everyone into separate server like Mastodon — is showing to be a net positive for everyone .