Mark Zuckerberg, CEO at Meta, introduced Threads as an expansion of Instagram

Meta’s latest product, Threads, a potential Twitter competitor, was launched. As an extension of Instagram’s popular photo and video-sharing platform, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg created Threads with the goal of fostering a creative and imaginative environment where people can express their ideas.

Users can easily switch from Instagram to Threads, a platform designed for public chat and real-time updates. Users can keep their username and verification by logging in to their Instagram account, and they also have the ability to explicitly modify their profile for threads. Reflecting Instagram’s dedication to diversity, the app offers accessible features such as screen reader support and AI-generated image explanations.

For discovery and engagement, Threads also has a feed that blends updates from Instagram profiles that are followed with suggested content from emerging authors. Users can submit links, images and videos of up to five minutes, along with text-based entries of up to 500 characters. Additionally, Threads enables users to share their content as links or Instagram Stories posts, increasing the impact and reach of their work.

Strong user control features built into the microblogging platform allow users to control who can mention or reply to their posts and filter out certain words from thread responses. Additionally, the program offers well-known security measures including account banning, limiting and reporting.

Looking ahead, Meta plans to make Threads compatible with ActivityPub, an open social networking protocol established by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). This compatibility would enable connections with other apps supporting ActivityPub. Meta says it envisions a future where users have more control over their audiences, including the option to transfer their content seamlessly to other services.

Available for download on iOS and Android devices in over 100 countries, including India, Threads allows users to explore local communities across a variety of apps. Additionally, Meta promised upcoming enhancements that would include improved feed suggestions and a search feature with added power for real-time topic and trend tracking.

Ahead of the start, Meta stock rose 3% on Wednesday, outpacing the progress of other tech firms, while the overall market moved down, according to Reuters.