It seems a growing number of people are leaving X (formerly Twitter) behind and checking out Bluesky, a newer social media platform that feels lighter, friendlier, and a little less tied to Elon Musk’s influence. Bluesky, which started as a project from former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, has become a buzzworthy alternative for those seeking a fresh social media vibe.
Bluesky was initially invite-only, but in February, it opened its doors to everyone. That exclusive phase gave the team time to fine-tune features like moderation tools to keep things positive and safe. The platform itself feels familiar if you’ve used X—there’s a “discover” feed, a chronological timeline of posts from people you follow, and features like direct messages, pinned posts, and curated starter packs to help new users get started.
The platform is growing fast. In November, Bluesky hit 15 million users, up from 13 million just a month earlier. It has seen several waves of new members, especially when something controversial happens on X. For example, when X was banned in Brazil in August, Bluesky gained over 2.6 million users in just a week, most of them from Brazil. Similarly, a single day in October saw 500,000 new sign-ups when X announced that blocked accounts could still view public posts.
Many of Bluesky’s new users include journalists, celebrities, and politicians—especially those who lean left—who are excited about a space that feels less cluttered with ads and hate speech. Some have even described it as a throwback to the early, simpler days of Twitter.
Meanwhile, X continues to boast about its reach, claiming it “dominated” conversations about the recent U.S. election and broke records for user engagement.
But Bluesky isn’t just trying to replace X—it has bigger plans. The team is working on something they call a “protocol for public conversation.” In simple terms, they want to create a system that connects different social media platforms, making it easier for people to interact no matter where they’re posting. Think of it like how email works—you can send a message from Gmail to Yahoo without any trouble.
Right now, social media platforms operate like islands—you can only comment on a Twitter post if you’re on Twitter, or a TikTok if you’re on TikTok. Bluesky wants to break down these walls and make social media more open and connected.
For now, Bluesky is still growing, and it’s already becoming a place where users can enjoy a calmer, ad-free corner of the internet. Whether it will achieve its ambitious vision remains to be seen, but it’s certainly giving X users something to talk about.
