Meta Is Developing a Decentralized Social App To Rival Twitter

Meta might be taking on Twitter head-on soon.

The California-based tech giant is reportedly exploring a decentralized social network that could provide Twitter users an alternative other than the established and popular ones.

Meta didn't mention a projected release date for the app that would come from its exploration, though it already has a plan on how to build it.

Meta Twitter Alternative App Details

A Meta spokesperson mentioned that it is researching a standalone decentralized social network for texting updates, per a Reuters report. The company believes that it found an opportunity for "a separate space where creators and public figures can share timely updates about their interests."

According to an Engadget article, the app resulting from this exploration, codenamed P92, would let users post text-based updates and register and log in using their Instagram accounts. As such, it would populate users' profiles with their Instagram account details if they use their Instagram account to register and sign into the new app.

However, according to MoneyControl's observations, data sharing from Instagram to P92 will be minimal, if not none at all, after users sign up for the app through their Instagram account.

Indian business news website Moneycontrol.com, which Reuters credited for being the first to report the news, mentioned that its sources that Meta's new content app would support ActivityPub, the same decentralized social networking protocol that powers Mastodon, the most popular Twitter alternative currently in the market and other federated apps.

Additionally, people can expect P92 to be an app interoperable with Mastodon and other decentralized apps that use ActivityPub since all of them use the same protocol.

Interestingly, users can set up their own servers and rules for content moderation, much like Mastodon does. Unlike Mastodon, however, the app will allow users to broadcast their posts to people on other servers, though it is unclear if they can follow each other.

Aside from broadcasting users' posts to other people from a different server, Meta also wants to give users the ability to add tappable links for posts with previews, sharable images and videos, and even verification badges, though Meta didn't disclose if it would charge for the badges in question.

Last but not least, P92's development is allegedly headed by Instagram head Adam Mossri, with Instagram's legal department already trying to determine if the app could have early privacy concerns before it launches publicly, per Tech Crunch.

Why A Twitter Competitor?

Many people believe that Meta's move to develop a decentralized social network for texting updates is its attempt to build an alternative to Elon Musk's Twitter and its popular alternatives like Mastodon, Clubhouse, and Hive.

Despite Musk's takeover of Twitter happening four months into the past, people are still fleeing the popular microblogging company for various reasons. This user exodus is a prime opportunity for Twitter's competitors and would-be or otherwise to capitalize on the situation with alternatives of their own.

Unfortunately, it could detrimentally affect Meta's efforts to make 2023 a "year of efficiency." Platformer reports that no company has yet to build a profitable, global-scale decentralized network. Meanwhile, there is no unclear successful business model for such an app, meaning that Meta could be sinking further down with the expenses it would incur from developing such an app.