Threads hits 70 MILLION users in less than two days as celebs flock to site

Meta’s new Twitter rival Threads is exploding in popularity, reaching 70 million users and seeing big celebrity names flock to the platform.

Experts have told DailyMail.com that the explosion in popularity highlights how Threads poses a “serious threat” to Elon Musk’s social network, which has been in turmoil since the Tesla boss took over.

In the wake of its launch on Thursday at 7pm EST, data from Threads shows that 95 million posts have been posted on Threads and that users of the Threads site have “liked” 190 million times.

Meanwhile, celebrities like Kris Jenner, Ashley Graham, Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian, Oprah and Kylie Jenner have appeared on Threads – along with the Dalai Lama and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

YouTube personality Logan Paul appeared on Threads and offered $5,000 to anyone who “reposted” his post.

Analysts say Threads’ explosive growth is aided by the fact that the app is tied to Instagram, which has more than a billion monthly users.

Users can sign up with their existing handles on Instagram and keep a share of their followers.

Reaching the 70 million milestone less than two days after launch shows just how badly Threads could disrupt Twitter, which has a reported ad reach of 372 million as of April.

Between March 2022 and March 2023, monthly active users of Twitter dropped 15 percent on iOS and 14 percent on Android in the US, according to RelatedWeb.

The drop came in the wake of chaotic decision-making and rapid changes on Twitter in the wake of Elon Musk’s acquisition of the app.

Gizmodo editor-in-chief Dan Ackerman told ABC News, “I think people were looking for an alternative that’s kind of like Twitter, but without the toxic vibe you have on Twitter right now.”

Many celebrities have already built up large followings on Threads, with Kim Kardashian having 2.9 million followers and Mark Zuckerberg having 2.1 million.

The Dalai Lama appeared on the app and posted a video to celebrate his 88th birthday.

J-Lo quickly amassed 2.1 million followers on threads and posted, “I firmly believe that true love exists and is real forever. What mantras do you live by?

Mark Zuckerberg has become increasingly combative about Twitter in his posts on both Threads and Twitter.

He posted, “We’re definitely focusing on friendliness and making this a friendly place,” on Threads.

Zuckerberg broke his 11-year silence on Twitter by posting a popular meme of Spider-Man pointing at each other.

On Threads he said: It will take a while, but I think there should be a public conversation app with over a billion people on it. Twitter has had a chance to do this, but it hasn’t done it right. Hopefully we will.”

The launch of Threads was reportedly brought forward after a series of chaotic decisions that have alienated both users and advertisers on Twitter, including Musk’s latest move to limit the number of tweets users can read per day.

The New York Times reported that in the five-week period from April 1, 2023, to the first week of May, Twitter’s ad revenue in the United States was about $88 million — a 59% drop from the previous year.

While Twitter is struggling financially, analysts have suggested that Threads could make up to $6 billion a year.

Justin Patterson, equity research analyst at KeyBanc Capital Markets, wrote in a research note that ads on Threads can contribute up to 5% to Meta’s total revenue.

Zuckerberg has promised no ads until the product “works right.”

He wrote, “Our approach will be the same as with all of our other products: first get the product working well, then see if we can get it on a clear path to 1 billion people, and then think about monetization.”

Threads’ rapid growth makes it a “serious threat” to Twitter, PR and social media expert Rhea Freeman says in a conversation with DailyMail.com

She says, “The growth rate has been incredible in a short amount of time and the ease of integration with Instagram makes it effortless to sign up.

“Right now, there’s a hugely positive vibe about Threads and people are excited about the ‘new’ text-based platform in addition to Instagram features like Hidden Words that are supposed to offer more ‘protection’ from trolls.

‘Threads is Meta and has Meta’s clout, budget and know-how behind it. There was a huge buzz about it before launch and the integration with Instagram is – in my opinion – a big part of its success.

There’s no point in learning a new platform and many have ‘trust’ in Meta and how it works because they’ve been using the platforms for so long.

“I think the media coverage with Threads has greatly contributed to it getting an invaluable Pr as well, with most people knowing about it even if they’re not much into social media. The interesting relationship between Elon and Mark is also another angle that helped make Threads really news.’