Threads, Meta’s newest social media offering, made a remarkable debut, with 30 million users signing up on its launch day, according to Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s CEO.

Zuckerberg introduced Threads as a “friendly” competitor to Twitter, which Elon Musk acquired in October. According to industry experts, Threads could attract Twitter users dissatisfied with recent platform modifications.

In response, Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino stated that while Twitter is “often imitated,” its unique community “can never be replicated.”

Threads allows users to post up to 500 characters and offers many Twitter-like features. To distinguish Threads, Zuckerberg emphasized the importance of sustaining a “friendly” platform for its success. This prompted Musk’s response, “It is infinitely preferable to be attacked by strangers on Twitter than indulge in the false happiness of hide-the-pain Instagram.”

When asked on Threads if the app will surpass Twitter, Zuckerberg responded, “I believe there should be a public conversations app with 1 billion or more users. Twitter has had the chance to accomplish this but has not succeeded. We will, we hope.”

A user told the BBC that Threads is a “much-needed competitor” to Twitter.

However, Threads has been criticized for possible data usage issues. According to the Apple App Store, the app may collect user-identifiable health, financial, and browsing data. In addition, some users have expressed concern over the inability to remove a Threads profile without deleting the corresponding Instagram profile. Meta responded, “At this time, you can’t delete your Threads profile without deleting your Instagram account. This is something we’re working on. In the meantime, you can deactivate your Threads profile at any time.”

The company clarified that deactivating a Threads profile would render the profile and its interactions invisible but would not affect the associated Instagram account. Meta added that users can extract and delete Threads data via their Instagram settings.

Threads is presently downloadable in over 100 countries, including the United Kingdom, but has yet to launch in the European Union due to regulatory issues.

Threads’ launch is a significant occasion from an AI standpoint. As social media platforms increasingly rely on AI for content moderation, recommendation algorithms, and user engagement, Threads’s success may hinge on how well it employs AI. The platform’s capacity to provide a user-friendly experience while ensuring data privacy and security will demonstrate artificial intelligence’s influence and potential on social media’s future.