Why I switched from X to Threads

Since Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, almost only bad (product) decisions have been made there. The name “Twitter” and recognizable terms like “tweeting” were thrown straight into the trash, and in their place came “X.” Elon had the domain name x.com lying around somewhere, and after several failed attempts to rename one of his companies to X (as he previously tried with PayPal), Twitter ultimately received the dubious honor.

After a massive round of layoffs and strange product changes, such as paying for a blue checkmark (verification) and restricting access to the API, the algorithm also started to change. It began to promote increasingly polarizing posts, partly fueled by Musk himself, who frequently shared fake news, conspiracy theories, and hateful messages.

All of this led to more and more users noticing that their experience on X significantly worsened, causing many to turn to other social media platforms, including many advertisers. What was once the platform for breaking news and viral moments is now seen as Musk’s toxic playground that you’d rather not be associated with.

As a result, many users found their way to Mastodon, Bluesky, or – like myself – Threads, Meta’s Twitter alternative. Threads combines many of the functionalities that once made Twitter so attractive but (for now?) without the toxic atmosphere. The app is still in its early stages, but you can feel that there’s something positive in the air on the platform. If Meta handles this well and makes the right decisions in the long term (e.g., disconnecting it from Instagram), this could become something huge and deliver the final blow to X.

In a time when social media plays a massive role in our daily lives and society, it is essential for me to choose a platform that contributes to positivity. Unfortunately, this meant saying goodbye to Twitter, but fortunately, Threads offers a worthy successor.