Facebook (NASDAQ:META) founder Mark Zuckerberg’s brand new social media platform Threads smashed 10 million subscribers within the first seven hours of operation, Zuck has confirmed.
Marking the milestone in his fifth post on Threads, Zuckerberg’s announcement has garnered 106,000 likes and more than 21,000 replies at the time of writing.
The app is not currently available in the European Union, meaning a significant segment of the addressable market is yet to flock to the app.
For context, Twitter, which Threads is in direct competition with, has approximately 335 million users.
The rapid pace of Threads’ uptake is due to its seamless integration with Instagram, another social media platform under the Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:FB) umbrella.
Instagram has over two billion users, making it highly possible that Threads could rapidly eclipse Twitter’s user base if the current rate of uptake continues.
Threads has been criticised as being a carbon copy of Twitter, something Zuck has not necessarily denied.
“Speaking with popular podcaster Lex Fridman earlier this year, Zuck said: “I always thought that Twitter should have a billion people using it… That idea, coupled with good execution, should get there."
So Musk paid $44 billion for something Mark Zuckerberg just copy and pasted without the baggage?— Meet Kevin (@realMeetKevin) July 6, 2023
Twitter owner Elon Musk has remained largest silent about the sudden launch of what could prove to be a major competitor to Twitter.
His most recent post on Twitter stated: “Must confess to a deep love of fashion & architecture.”
Despite the rapid uptake, Threads is not yet monetised with advertising, though this likely to come in due course.