John Paul M. Joaquin Tech 07.06.2023 06:Jul AM EDT

Meta’s Threads Is Officially Out, Gets 10M Users in Ten Hours

Meta's Twitter rival, Threads, is off to a great start.

Company CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently published a post on Thread announcing that ten million people have signed up for the company's Twitter Alternative on launch.

Meta released Threads on July 6 to compete with Twitter and other Twitter alternatives for the best microblogging platform on the internet.

Meta Threads Launch Day Details

Meta's Threads may have had ten million people sign up for it when it launched, but it didn't do so without help. You may recall that Threads, known as P92 in-company during its development, was built on the back of Instagram; as a result, Instagram users can use their accounts to create a Threads profile, making the sign-up process easier to do.

This feature worked well for Threads, as the problem with all other Twitter alternatives was their lack of users, per Android Police. To get started on the website, insterested Instagram users would need to log in with their Instagram account, though they can customize their Thread profile as they wish without it relying too much on the data Instagram provides.

During the initial setup process, Instagram users can send a follow request on Threads to all their friends on Instagram or follow them manually.

Unfortunately, signing up for Threads without an Instagram account is not possible as of press time, though Meta might add the ability to do so in a future update. Another thing to look out for when using Instagram to sign up for Threads is deleting profiles.

According to a Tech Crunch report, Meta explained in a "Supplemental privacy Policy" that Threads users may deactivate their profile at any time, but deleting it rather than deactivating it will also delete their Instagram account. Meta believes that a Threads profile is part of a user's Instagram account - a belief that shocked many users at launch.

As such, Instagram users who have yet to sign up for Threads may want to think carefully before joining Meta's Twitter rival, while those who already signed up may want to deactivate their Threads profile to avoid deleting their Instagram account.

What Is Threads?

Threads, as previously mentioned, is Meta's microblogging app to rival Twitter. Developed by the Instagram team, it allows users to post up to 500 characters long and include links, photos, and videos up to 5 minutes in length, per Instagram.

The app comes with a familiar look as it appears just like Twitter, but it uses Instagram's icons like the heart icon, the comment icon, the share icon, and a new report icon.

In terms of its use by minors, everyone under the legal age of their respective country will default to a private profile when they join Threads, though it is unsure if they can change their privacy settings once they are of age.

Regardless, Threads users can choose to follow the same accounts they do on Instagram and find more people who care about the same things they do.