Elon Musk blasts Threads, by using Twitter, as Australians flock to Instagram’s new app

Australians rushed to download the new Threads app started by Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta as a direct rival to Elon Musk’s Twitter — as the South African mogul entered the platform to take a shot at the Facebook founder.

Meta uses its Instagram platform to encourage users to download Threads – which has quickly become the number one downloaded app for iPhones and Android phones in Australia, according to top lists for both Apple’s App Store and Google Play.

When it launched Wednesday this week, 30 million people had signed up to the microblogging platform within hours, amid predictions it could “kill” Twitter.

Musk quickly responded by threatening to sue Zuckerberg over the launch of the new app, with his personal attorney Alex Spiro sending Zuckerberg a cease and desist order.

The letter states that Meta used “Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property” to build the new app.

It also accused Zuckerberg’s company of hiring “dozens of former Twitter employees,” claiming that some of them had “improperly retained Twitter documents and electronic devices.”

Musk recently responded to a tweet about the potential legal action by saying, “Competition is fine, cheating isn’t.”

The founder of Tesla and SpaceX also responded to a Twitter user who posted a photo of the “Control,” “C” and “V” keys — suggesting that Threads had directly copied Twitter — with a smiling emoji.

When asked about Threads’ prospect, Musk tweeted, “I’m sure the Earth can’t wait to be exclusively under Zuck’s thumb with no other options.”

Zuckerberg is trying to use Meta’s Instagram platform to position Threads as a serious rival to Twitter as the world’s largest microblogging site

Earlier, Zuckerberg used his Twitter account for the first time in more than a decade to pit the internet-famous meme of two characters dressed as Spiderman against each other, without a caption.

The tech entrepreneur has also not brushed aside any speculation. Threads was launched to take advantage of Twitter’s rocky path under Musk.

“It will take time, but I think there should be a public conversation app with over 1 billion people,” Zuckerberg wrote on Threads.

“Twitter had a chance to do this, but it didn’t do it right. Hopefully we will.

The respected tech bible Wired said that Threads, which offers many of the same features as Twitter, “has great potential, thanks to its polished technology, built-in user base and a reputation for better moderation that is likely to please advertisers with big money.”

Threads (pictured) is deemed to have a ready audience thanks to pushout to Instagram’s two billion global users

Available through Meta’s Instagram platform, Threads has quickly become the number one downloaded app for iPhones and Android phones in Australia, according to top lists for both Apple’s App Store (pictured) and Google Play

Threads is believed to have a ready audience as it is being pushed to Instagram’s two billion global users.

Since Musk bought Twitter for US$44 billion in October 2022, his ownership of the platform has been criticized by tech experts and users after he brutally cut headcount and introduced a fee for having a verified ‘blue check’ on Twitter. accounts.

Most recently, Musk “limited” free Twitter accounts by restricting users to viewing just 600 tweets per day, a move that has been ridiculed by account holders on his own platform.

Earlier, Zuckerberg used his Twitter account for the first time in more than a decade to pit the internet-famous meme of two characters dressed as Spiderman against each other, without a caption