Instagram's rival to Twitter, Threads, has amassed an astonishing 10 million users in just its first seven hours, according to Mark Zuckerberg. This poses a fresh challenge to Elon Musk as the app, owned by Zuckerberg's Meta, offers a text-based version of Instagram focused on real-time updates and public conversations.
Zuckerberg enthusiastically welcomed users to Threads in his initial post on the app, accompanied by a fire emoji. In a playful nod to the rivalry between him and Musk, he also tweeted a popular Spiderman meme depicting a face-off between the two.
Threads can now be downloaded from both Apple's App Store and Google's Play Store in over 100 countries, including the UK, US, Australia, Canada, Japan, and Nigeria. Meta has been developing Threads for several months, aiming to attract celebrity users who have abandoned Twitter due to dissatisfaction with Musk's leadership. Additionally, Instagram hopes its large existing user base will give it an advantage over Twitter.
To join the Instagram Threads community, the first step is to download the app, which is available on both iOS and Android platforms. Although an Instagram account is required to sign up, a separate download is necessary to access the Threads features.