Threads, the Twitter rival from Instagram, may launch on July 6; what we know so far

Over the last few months, we have heard about this new Twitter rival app called Threads, which is being built by Instagram. We have seen a couple of leaked screenshots that highlighted that while the visual aesthetics of the platform will be similar to Instagram, the functionality is close to what Twitter offers. Additionally, just like some other Twitter rivals that have emerged recently such as Bluesky and Mastodon, Threads is also likely to be a decentralized platform. And now, reports have revealed that after all the anticipation, the app is likely to launch on July 6, in just two days’ time.

The report comes from The Verge, which found the App Store listing mentioning that “Threads, an Instagram app” will be available to download on July 6. This information follows the Google Play Store listing for Threads that briefly shared some basic information about the app.

What is Instagram Threads

In essence, it is a social media platform based on Instagram that is focused on limited text-based communication, much like Twitter. The platform is expected to be decentralized, meaning people can use a different app and can still be on Threads. The official App Store description of the platform is as follows:

“Say more with Threads — Instagram’s text-based conversation app

Threads is where communities come together to discuss everything from the topics you care about today to what’ll be trending tomorrow. Whatever it is you’re interested in, you can follow and connect directly with your favorite creators and others who love the same things — or build a loyal following of your own to share your ideas, opinions and creativity with the world.”

Instagram Thread could launch on July 6

It should be noted that just because Threads is likely to appear on July 6 in the App Store and let users download, it may not be user-ready. Some reports have suggested that there could be a slow and gradual rollout of the service and it may be unlocked in some regions initially.

The excitement around Threads is also high given Twitter owner Elon Musk recently announced that users will face a limit to the number of tweets they can view per day. Verified accounts have been restricted to 8000 tweets, whereas the unverified accounts’ limit has been set to 800. Newly-made unverified accounts will only be able to see 400 tweets per day. Calling the move temporary, Musk had explained that the measure was taken to “address extreme levels of data scraping & system manipulation.”