One million users in 24 hours. Here’s why people are moving from X to
Bluesky.
Bluesky reached one million users in just 24 hours, signaling the rapid rise of the new social media platform.
On the evening of November 15th, Bluesky — a platform often dismissed as X's knockoff — announced a jaw-dropping milestone: one million new users in just 24 hours.
It’s been a meteoric rise for the app, which only opened to the public in February 2024 after nearly a year of being invite-only. Now, it boasts over 16 million users.
So, what exactly is Bluesky, and why should anyone care?
What Is Bluesky?
Bluesky started in 2019 as Twitter’s side project under Jack Dorsey’s leadership. By 2021, it spun out into an independent company, now helmed by CEO Jay Graber, who also owns a significant stake in the business.
At first glance, Bluesky looks and feels like Twitter’s minimalist cousin. Posts with a 256-character limit, that can include media like photos, videos, GIFs, and links. Posts can be liked, commented on, reposted, or shared via DMs.
But here’s where it gets interesting: Bluesky isn’t just a Twitter clone. It’s built on the AT Protocol, an open-source framework that allows anyone to see how the platform works under the hood. The app also introduces “custom feeds,” which let users pick and pin algorithms tailored to their interests. Think of it as having a playlist for your timeline.
However, Bluesky still lacks some features its competitors have nailed, like a trending topics page. That makes it feel less like a real-time news hub and more like a quiet, quirky alternative.
Is Bluesky better than X?
Some would argue, yes. Other than many people claiming it’s much kinder from the interaction perspective, a user, Andrew Dessler, recently ran a side-by-side experiment: posting identical content on X (to his 39K followers) and Bluesky (to his 7K followers). The result? Bluesky delivered ten times the engagement per follower.
Even Jay Graber chimed in, explaining the app’s magic:
“We haven’t dipped below ~30% of users actively posting. That’s way better than the 90-9-1 rule on most platforms, where 90% of users are just lurkers.”
Of course, Bluesky is still the underdog. Threads has 275 million monthly active users, and X remains the behemoth with 600 million monthly users. But the tide may be turning.
Why the Sudden Surge?
Bluesky has been quietly gaining steam for months. Key drivers? X’s ban in Brazil, moderation headaches on Threads, and—most recently—the US election results, which sent over a million new users to the platform in just a week.
The buzz also got a boost from a $15 million Series A funding round last month, following an $8 million seed round in 2023. Funding headlines always bring fresh eyes.
Why Should Indie Hackers Care?
Bluesky is becoming a serious player. How serious? Serious enough that Mark Zuckerberg is already scrambling to respond. Yesterday, he announced Threads is testing its own custom feeds—a clear move to copy Bluesky’s standout feature.
And when Meta starts mimicking your product? That’s when you know the competition has officially arrived.
I wish someone would bring out a genuinely new social media startup. The AT protocol is good but, it's really just X minus @elon
I have no idea about Bluesky but this will help me out thanks.
What's the point of joining data?
Show how many are actively using that?
How many posts in every single day?
How's the engagement?
Thread also got so many signups on the launching days.
Bluesky already seems to be shadow banning people who are commenting and posting things that don't fit the narrative/ideology of Bluesky. It will basically be a reddit version of twitter
Is there proof of this?
not trying to argue, just genuinely curious :)
I think it's misleading to say "1,000,000 have joined Bluesky..." when a large number of those new accounts are going to be for spam/marketing, and not actual individual users.
In just 24 hours, Bluesky reached a million users! This decentralized platform and ad-free experience reshape the way we connect online. Users are flocking from X seeking more privacy, freedom, and a new way to engage in social media. This is more than just a platform; it is a movement towards transparency and control. Could it be the future of social networking? What are your thoughts on this exciting change?
I'm extremely open to a new Twitter competitor. I do like a few thing's Twitter's new management's has done, but I overall have a very negative view of them. Particularly, I've personally noticed a rise in extreme rhetoric, which was always there, but now seems to be more acceptable to engage with and amplified from previously non-extremist types, and even some very deranged rhetoric from high profile "normal" sources (tech CEOs). I'm also irked by the "new boss" having exactly the same type of censorious tendencies that was criticized of the "old boss". Everybody claims to want free speech , nobody does (maybe Substack), but they all manage to have the worst of all worlds with lots of censorship AND lots of misinformation (looking at Reddit as well).
But Twitter is incredibly sticky. We also saw these exact same stories play out a few years ago with Mastodon. "Millions of signups! Everyone's leaving and loves the new thing! More authentic!" Didn't stick. Granted, Bluesky's approach seems more sophisticated than Mastodon, but we also saw a lot of Mastodon users quietly and sheepishly return to Twitter. Might happen again. Especially since Threads is dividing the diaspora.
I even remember a left-wing journalist who kept getting banned , switching to Mastodon when banned on Twitter, but then everytime unbanned on Twitter, stopping Mastodon and returning to Twitter, repeatedly! I couldn't believe it. Like someone who kept leaving a good relationship for an abuser as soon as the abuser was willing to take them back.
Bluesky's open-source protocol thing is intriguing but need to dive deeper there.
I think most of us indie hackers have a very high threshold for problems before we'll give up on a platform we deem is valuable for business goals. And Twitter still seems valuable. For me, new Twitter ("X") management has certainly been pushing hard against my threshold, so I'm rooting for Bluesky and will check it out. But, I remain very skeptical it will overturn the huge inertia effect of existing Twitter.
But most importantly of all - indie hacker opportunities for Bluesky tooling !
it's the Power of Jack Dorsey and make wrong Decision of Elon Musk.
Jack Dorsey left the Blue Sky board in favor of Nostr...
Beyond politics: Bluesky is simple, open-sourced, and resembles a nostalgia of the early days of Twitter and social media. I think many people have been interested in joining a space without the dramatic overhead of more established social media networks.
lol this is gonna be the worst echo chamber ever of whiny libs who are afraid of free speech
Person A: Says something inflammatory (exercises their free speech)
Person B: Snaps back, calls it out, whinges, whines (exercises their free speech)
Person A: Waahhh! Don't tell me my opinion sucks! I'm just exercising my free speech (ignores the irony). You hate free speech!
I only see one comment with someone whining...yours.
Good Post
Sure feels like whenever there's a shift in the social media scene, it's like moving to a new town. Excited for something fresh, but skeptical if it'll stick around. Here's to hoping Bluesky isn't just another flash in the social media pan!
There have been a million users on Bluesky in just 24 hours! With its decentralized model and new take on social networking, it is becoming a haven for those seeking independence from the recent changes made by X. The user interface is cleaner, innovative features are available, and the company is committed to transparency.
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