Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter has seen users scrambling to find an alternative service with a similar set of features, and it looks as though Mark Zuckerberg is going to provide them with one.
As Moneycontrol reports, Meta is working on a new service codenamed P92, which will take the form of a standalone app for text-based content sharing. It will carry the Instagram branding and support the open, decentralized social networking protocol ActivityPub, which Mastodon uses. Existing Instagram login support would also mean P92 could hit the ground running with billions of users at launch.
Meta confirms the project is real. "We’re exploring a standalone decentralized social network for sharing text updates. We believe there’s an opportunity for a separate space where creators and public figures can share timely updates about their interests," a spokesperson says.
Expected features include tappable links, user bios, verification badges, the ability to share images and videos, and of course the option to follow other users and like what they post. In other words, it's Twitter in all but name.
In the months that followed Musk's takeover of Twitter, alternative services such as Mastodon saw a huge increase in user numbers. However, Mastodon's surge to 2.5 million users in December looks tiny compared to Twitter's 350 million+ userbase, and that surge seems to be ending. Meta is a different beast, however, and Zuckerberg entering the ring with billions of users and the Instagram brand may give Musk some sleepless nights.