Bluesky announced on Thursday evening that they had experienced a significant increase in new users, with over 1 million people signing up for the platform in just 24 hours. This surge in sign-ups marked one of the busiest days for the company and pushed the total number of users on the social network past the 16 million mark.
The announcement from Bluesky came shortly after Instagram head Adam Mosseri revealed that Threads had seen more than 15 million sign-ups in the month of November alone. He also mentioned that the Meta-owned platform had been consistently adding 1 million new users each day for the past three months.
However, Bluesky encountered some technical difficulties on Thursday as some users experienced service disruptions. A Bluesky developer attributed this issue to a cable problem with one of the company’s ISPs, which compounded other networking challenges.
The decentralized social network has been attracting a steady stream of users in recent months, driven by various events such as X’s ban in Brazil, moderation problems on Threads, and the outcome of the U.S. presidential election. Following the election results, more than a million new users joined Bluesky in just a week, the company reported on Tuesday.
The surge in sign-ups over the past 24 hours propelled Bluesky to the top of the free apps chart on the U.S. App Store, surpassing popular apps like ChatGPT and Threads. Although Bluesky still lags behind Threads, which boasts over 275 million active users, CEO Jay Graber highlighted that Bluesky has higher user engagement compared to X.
Graber emphasized that Bluesky has a higher percentage of active posters on the platform, unlike most social sites that typically follow a 90-9-1 pattern of lurkers, commenters, and posters. Bluesky has consistently maintained a poster percentage of around 30% or higher, indicating a more engaged user base.
In terms of funding and future plans, Bluesky recently secured $15 million in Series A funding led by Blockchain Capital, with participation from other investors. The company also announced its intention to introduce subscription-based services in the near future to further enhance the user experience and platform sustainability.
