Is Bluesky The Next Big Social Media Platform?!

Whenever I think about where to get up-and-coming information that I can reach at the touch of my fingertips, I naturally think of X.

The social media titan, formerly known as Twitter, is still widely considered the hub of breaking and trending news happening within and around the world. This hubris may be why the site has undergone an adjustment period in recent years. Twitter was formerly owned and operated by Jack Dorsey, who stepped down from his position as CEO in late 2021. After a landmark purchase by Elon Musk, the SpaceX founder bought the company for $44 billion.

The shift on the website has been felt by old and new users alike. This is due to Musk championing an overhaul of significant features that made the site stand out to begin with. These include changing the website domain, adding paid website subscriptions to the site that was famously known as being too good to be free, changes in algorithms, and block system management, among others. These features have drawn the disgust of many at worst and apathy of others at best.

It’s also of note that X is no longer publicly available to buy stock in, making shareholders who previously held selling for roughly $54 per share. In cases where a website that is publicly accessible for shareholders in, let’s say, the New York Stock Exchange, investors can input any feedback to the contribution of the website and, in turn, receive breakdowns of whatever they’re investing in. After all, these same people are allegedly the reason why Dorsey stepped down from his position, left with the lingering notion he could no longer manage the company. This reasoning may be why Musk had X go completely private not long after his acquisition in 2022, thus making Twitter’s former worth plummet by 80%.

Growing disinterest with the site’s management has led many to find alternatives. The last attempt was Threads, the text-based Instagram offshoot from Meta that rose to the top but has slowly fizzled down. Possibly due to Meta’s growing surveillance aspects of their social media platforms, the constant inclusion of AI, or just the overall layout makes people feel the same apathy they feel with other platforms. Even this brings up a growing sentiment among social media users that there is no effective substitute for text-based social media platforms anymore.

Previously, during the heyday of social media, there were many niche platforms that could at least scratch an oddly specific itch if one platform was unable to do so. Tumblr was the originator of "not like most social media" mediums, relying heavily on its photo blogging capabilities and fangirl-motivated inclusion to keep the site afloat. After a series of algorithm changes and controversial censorship mandates, many site users have flocked to different platforms that were readily available.  

X is slowly suffering the same fate, only there’s nowhere for users to run to. There were other options over the years, as the resentment for the site has only persevered from the start. Clubhouse was an option at one point. Hive comes to mind as well. There are even still some supporters of Mastodon if you look closely enough.

The current kingpin of alternatives is Bluesky, X’s offbeat, edgy cousin. Bluesky has been a bit of an underdog for years, always lingering in hopes of rising to the top. With X’s current spree of bots running rampant in the reply spaces of tweets and the clog of toxicity manifesting on the timeline, users have been scouring for a way out.

Bluesky offers a solution. It encourages the initial spark of what made Twitter great, with thoughtful discourse and creativity running rampant among users, along with a scarcity of bots and traditionalist politically inclined advertisements soaked throughout the site. Maybe what makes Bluesky so competitive is the fact that it’s made with the same factors that made Twitter so interesting to begin with. Bluesky was originally started by Dorsey in 2019, while still overseeing Twitter as the CEO. His tenure within the website is felt even after stepping down in May of 2024, with the greater aspects of Twitter included before the rebranding as X and advertisement-mania enveloped the site. Bluesky, as of this writing, has managed to gather 24 million users, an astonishing upgrade from its 2 million in 2023.

Bluesky offers a decentralized notion of social media, perfect for users growing apathetic with the current monotony of overflowing ad-ridden content. Bluesky also gives a certain feel of nostalgia, reminding users of how social media used to be during its inception. It’s simplistic in its design, with character limits, customization of hashtags, and a lack of verification badges.

This, in part, could also lead to disinterest for bigger creators. With a lack of verification and monetization options, it doesn’t leave much room for influencers to migrate to the platform. But couldn’t this also be a good thing? The decentralized nature of the platform makes it definitively one for the people, with a focus on sharing unfiltered information from journalists and news outlets alike, and a nucleus of autonomy for users, this could be mutually beneficial for the community. It’s a refreshing change of pace, showering consumers with the benefits of a time we didn’t know would be fleeting.

It’s still too early to tell if Bluesky is the solution to those soured from a Musk-filled environment. With a rapidly growing user base and emphasis on simplicity that seems to be desired by Americans currently, Bluesky has all the right tools to overthrow X. Could this be an early herald of an exodus of X? Or will the site follow the same fate as alternates before it? Only time will tell....