Meta previously launched an app called Threads but it was more focused on beating Snapchat than being a Twitter killer

• Threads is off to a roaring start in its bid to beat Twitter.
• This is not Meta’s first attempt at launching an app called Threads, though.
• It launched one in 2019 to take on Snapchat and it’s notably different from the new Threads. 

Mark Zuckerberg is taking aim at Elon Musk’s Twitter.

Threads, Meta’s much-anticipated Twitter clone, launched on Wednesday and is already being billed as one of the more substantial threats to Musk’s turbulent platform. 

But it’s not the first app by Meta to use the name Threads.

Meta, back when it was known as Facebook, launched an app called Threads in late 2019. The app was also made for Instagram and was similarly aimed at a rival platform. In 2019, however, the rival was Snapchat.

The app focused on instant messaging and quick photo-sharing. It functioned in a similar way to Snapchat and was promoted as a “camera-first” messaging app where users could send text, photo, or video messages to friends. 

Threads didn’t manage to achieve mainstream adoption despite a revamp in 2020, however, and was officially shut down in 2021. A similar messaging app with the same mission, Direct, launched in 2017 only to shut down in 2019.

The new Threads app has been in development since January and already appears to be notably different from the prior app by the same name. The app is text-based and has pivoted to focus on public conversation rather than private messages, a move many see as an attempt to lure users away from Twitter.

The early profiles of companies and influencers could briefly be accessed from the desktop version of Threads on Wednesday. They follow a similar format to Twitter with a different background and feature an additional link back to Instagram.

According to Zuckerberg, Threads amassed more than 10 million users in the first seven hours.

—Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) July 5, 2023

Twitter has been notably tumultuous recently, which makes Zuckerberg’s attempt at a death blow particularly relevant.

Last week, Musk abruptly announced new limits on the amount of time users could be active on the platform — his latest in a series of erratic business moves. The rule change annoyed users, especially those who rely on Twitter to do their jobs or promote their personal brands.

The chaos has left many hoping the new Meta app will be a viable and stable alternative to Twitter. Elon Musk’s chaotic management of the platform in the last year has alienated users and triggered the release or resurgence of several copycat platforms.

In the past, Zuckerberg has shown his business savvy when it comes to identifying successful concepts in other platforms and integrating them into Meta apps, as Insider’s Hasan Chowdhury noted.

Instagram’s stories, which drew heavy inspiration from a similar Snapchat feature, have since outperformed their original rival. Instagram reels are also a blatant attempt to copy TikTok’s business model, albeit these have not been as successful. 

Time will tell if Threads meets the same fate as its predecessor, but Zuckerberg’s second shot is certainly off to a roaring start.