Threads web application expected to launch this week
According to sources familiar with the matter, The Wall Street Journal reports that a web version of Instagram’s Threads will be launched this week. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg had previously pledged to introduce a web version with improved search capabilities, and Instagram head Adam Mosseri confirmed that it is currently being tested. Presently, Threads is solely accessible on iOS and Android, with limited read-only features on web browsers.
The web version is near the top of Threads’ list of most wanted features, but the company is cautious about the release. “It’s a little buggy right now, you don’t want it yet,” Mosseri said Friday on Instagram. “As soon as it’s ready, we’ll share it with everyone else.”
Threads recently added new features to Threads, such as the ability to set notifications and view posts in chronological order. The company also began labeling state-controlled media outlets after some were seen publishing propaganda. Another new update is the “repost” tab, which makes it easier to see all the reposted content. (X, formerly Twitter, recently renamed “retweets” to the more general “reposts,” ironically led by Threads.)
The online version would be coming at the right time for Threads. After a rough launch in the first week, with more than 100 million users logging in, the number of daily active users (DAUs) dropped to 80% by mid-August. Still, Threads is by far the most successful alternative to X, with about 238 million DAUs as of August 2023 and 364 million monthly active users, X reported last year.
In any case, the release of the online version will be especially useful for social media power users, just as X has put one of its most important tools for these people, Tweetdeck, permanently behind a paywall.
