Bluesky and Threads Gain Millions of Brazilian X Users Overnight
On Friday, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered the shutdown of X, formerly known as Twitter, driving Brazilian users to alternatives.
Platforms like Meta’s Threads and Bluesky, supported by Twitter’s co-founder Jack Dorsey, gained popularity.
Before this shutdown, these platforms had already been gathering users unhappy with the changes at X after Elon Musk’s takeover in 2022.
However, the recent legal dispute accelerated this movement. By Wednesday, Bluesky saw a record of 2.07 million posts.
By the weekend, postings in Portuguese reached 73.7%, surpassing English at 16.5%. Meta used its vast Instagram user base of over 2 billion to boost Threads.
They ran prominent ads encouraging users to join and engage. By Saturday, Meta had not yet commented on the Brazilian influx.
Bluesky reported over 880,000 new Brazilian users in just two days, raising its active users to about 7 million. The platform welcomed the Brazilians with a post celebrating their record-breaking activity.
As X’s presence in Brazil was winding down, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva promoted his profiles on other social platforms. He highlighted his accounts on Threads, Bluesky, Facebook, Whatsapp, and TikTok.
Following the court’s decision, many users began exploring these new platforms. They posted messages seeking old connections and shared their first experiences as newcomers.
However, they missed certain features like “trending topics,” which sparked discussions on needed improvements.
A July report by Folha de S. Paulo criticized the alternatives for not fully matching X’s former popularity.
Background Bluesky
Bluesky Social is a decentralized microblogging service founded by Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s former CEO.
Established as a public benefit corporation in 2021, it is based in Wilmington, Delaware.
Bluesky offers the open-source AT Protocol to enhance user autonomy by allowing more control over content moderation and feed algorithms.
This approach ensures that content is not manipulated for virality, distinguishing it from conventional social media platforms.
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This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief