Meta's new "Threads" to challenge Twitter

The move marks another development in the ongoing rivalry between Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Twitter owner Elon Musk. Last month, the two tech moguls jokingly agreed to a physical fight, highlighting the underlying tension between them. Musk's recent tweet about Threads took a swipe at Zuckerberg, expressing relief that Twitter is "sanely run."

In a separate move, Twitter has announced that its popular user dashboard, TweetDeck, will soon require a paid subscription, part of Musk's efforts to drive users to sign up for Twitter Blue, the platform's subscription service. Musk had previously restricted the number of tweets visible to users, citing concerns about data scraping.

While Meta's Threads app appears to be free and unrestricted, gathering data from users' devices including location, purchases, and browsing history, Twitter has faced competition from similar Twitter-esque platforms in recent years. Donald Trump's Truth Social and Mastodon have emerged as contenders, and the app Bluesky reported increased traffic after Musk's tweet restrictions.

However, Threads poses the most significant threat to Twitter's dominance to date. Meta has a history of replicating successful ideas from other companies, as seen with Reels mirroring TikTok and Stories resembling Snapchat. With Threads being part of the Instagram platform, it will automatically connect with hundreds of millions of existing accounts, giving it a considerable advantage over other aspiring rivals.

While Musk has garnered praise for his commitment to free speech, his actions have also alienated some users. Zuckerberg aims to capitalize on this by attracting disillusioned Twitter users to embrace Threads as a genuine alternative.

With the launch of Threads, the battle between Meta and Twitter intensifies. As the social media landscape evolves, it remains to be seen whether Meta's app will be able to disrupt Twitter's stronghold and reshape the way users engage in text-based conversations online