Mark Zuckerberg is making good on his promise to accelerate the use of Threads.
After setting the record for most downloads of a new app, Threads struggled to retain a small fraction of those users on the platform, many of whom were looking for a like-for-like replacement of X, formerly known as Twitter.
Built quickly on the back of Instagram's tech by just 15 engineers to compete with Twitter, as that app's usefulness and popularity waned under Elon Musk's chaotic changes, Threads was initially bare bones. The Meta CEO insisted in July that the app was not in its final form. "I'm highly confident that we're gonna be able to pour enough gasoline on this to help it grow," Zuckerberg said.
Since then, Threads has rolled out a host of major new features, including a web version, keyword search, voice posts, and the ability to edit posts, even as it avoids promoting news. Smaller things, too, like being able to follow updates in individual threads at the tap of a bell icon, a way to mass follow people mentioned in a post, and even tag people's Instagram accounts, are now available.
As the app has matured quickly in recent weeks, users have started to return and downloads have continued to rise. So far in October, Threads has hovered around 33 million daily active users and 120 million monthly active users, according to data from Apptopia, up from about 25 million daily users and 100 million monthly users in July. An initial drop in usage found by SensorTower, where 78% of people who downloaded Threads stopped using the app, has shrunk to a 28% drop. Since the app launched on July 6, it's been downloaded 260 million times, Apptopia data shows, with downloads in September almost double the downloads in August.
Meanwhile, usage of Twitter, or X, continues to decline. Daily active users of the app have fallen 12 percent since July, according to Apptopia, while downloads are down 28%. Usage and downloads of X are down significantly in nearly every country where the app currently operates, and web traffic has fallen 15% in the US alone.
Although the entire team working on Threads remains small by Meta standards, around 50 people, the company was surprised by the interest in the app and "really wants it to work," an employee said.
To that end, Threads is now being integrated to an extent with Facebook and Instagram, two of the most popular apps in the world. There is a direct link to Threads on each user's Instagram page, a post on Threads can be sent in Instagram DMs, and as of this week, Threads is being promoted within the Instagram app feed via a small carousel of select posts under the header "Threads for you." That same recommended Threads carousel is also appearing in Facebook feeds. Threads was made a part of Instagram's October anniversary celebration in New York where the company invited creators to a day of panels on how to best use the platforms. Free merch included apparel featuring the Threads logo.
"A big thank you to everyone who's made Instagram and Threads what they are today," Adam Mosseri, head of Instagram, wrote on Threads about the event.
A Meta spokesperson did not reply to a request for comment.
More Threads features are said to be on the way, like polls. One of the biggest changes for Threads, however, will be when the platform starts to monetize. Two people familiar with the company's advertising business said the expectation is for Threads to be an option in the Meta Business Suite, the company's ads and business platform, early next year.
This week, cyber security analyst Jorge Caballero found within the app's code several new additions related to ads and paid partnerships, which are key for creators to highlight when a product they're posting about is an advertisement.
Should the momentum keep building and create a new place for Meta to gain advertising revenue, "Threads has the potential to be another major platform for META," Angelo Zino, a senior analyst at CFRA, said.
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