Instagram’s upcoming rival to Twitter: All about the new microblogging site

Instagram’s familiar bottom navigation bar which lets you quickly switch between its home page, your profile page, and more, has been retained. But there’s a change. The far-left home icon has been replaced with possibly a news feed icon – an attestation toward the mostly text-based feed this app will have. There’s no sign of Reels either.

According to Haberman, the app will have a feed that will showcase your followers and recommended content. Users will be able to post text updates of up to 500 characters in length, which is significantly higher than what free Twitter users are allowed (280 characters).

Screenshots of the new platform. (Image: Lia Haberman/Substack)

That’s not to say that the feed will be multimedia-free, though — the screenshots do show that posts can also be accompanied by photos. “Create with text and attach links, photos and videos. Engage with likes and replies to deepen connections with friends, fans and other creators,” reads an excerpt from the leaked marketing material.

Perhaps most significantly, the new Twitter competitor from Instagram will have an element of decentralisation. “Soon, our app will be compatible with certain other apps like Mastodon,” the leaked slide reads. “Users on these other apps will be able to search for, follow and interact with your profile and content if you’re public, or if you’re private and approve them as followers.”

The name of this new app remains unclear. The slide only refers to it as “Instagram’s new text-based app for conversations,” but Haberman says that the app is codenamed P92, or alternatively, Barcelona.

When is the new platform releasing?

The app could debut as early as June, according to a Reuters report which adds that Meta is currently testing the product with influencers and some creators.

What could the app spell for Twitter and, more importantly, Instagram users?

The slide reveals that Instagram users can sign in with their existing credentials and transfer their followers, username, bio, and verification status to the new text-based platform. This could give Instagram a significant edge over other Twitter rivals that emerged in recent months post-Elon Musk takeover.

Unlike platforms like Bluesky that have to build their user base from scratch, Instagram can leverage its 2.35 billion active users to grow the new platform. If this leaked information holds true, it would mean that getting started with the platform should be easy as pie for existing Instagram users.

The app will have a centralized feed showcasing your followers and recommended content

You can post text updates up to 500 characters (that’s less than an Instagram caption, an extended tweet or a LinkedIn post so be concise!)

And also videos and images.

— Lia Haberman (@liahaberman) May 19, 2023

On the other hand, many Twitter users are unhappy with the changes that Musk has introduced and are looking for alternatives. But in an era where established platforms have already amassed billions of users, the relatively bare Twitter clones deter users. Instagram again has a massive advantage here.

This isn’t the first clue pointing toward the making of a new social media platform under Meta. Back in March, the Zuckerberg-owned company revealed to Platformer that they’re exploring a standalone decentralised social network for sharing text updates.