There aren’t (m)any reasons to stay on X.

Bluesky, created by Twitter founder, Jack Dorsey, is the latest alternative to X to catch on. Today they reported over 1,000,000 new signups since the US presidential election results last week as folks are done with the misinformation, hate speech, busted algorithm, offensive content, and bots. It’s been detailed that Elon Musk weaponized X during the election and actively breaks more of his app every day as he feels.

It’s quickly pretty clear why folks are moving over to Bluesky. Using Bluesky feels like social media as it should be: Free and open to all with safety precautions in place.

Let’s break down the major differences in the two platforms.

Decentralized Server

Bluesky is a decentralized and federated (a collection of social networking services that can communicate with each other) social media platform. Both are microblogging social media sites however, Bluesky users have the ability to create custom feeds and have connected servers. Content is decentralized whereas everything on X is locked down on the same server. Large and small niche communities are present on Bluesky allowing for a customized experience on their platform.

Safety

Safety is core to social media. Bluesky moderates the app according to their community guidelines and  Composable Moderation allows users to stack more moderation services together, such as subscribable moderation lists. There are common community guidelines on Bluesky that all have to follow, but those settings can be further moderated for content filters.

For example, a fact-checking organization can run a labeling service and mark posts as “partially false,” “misleading,” or other categories. Then, users who trust this organization can subscribe to their labels. As the user scrolls through posts in the app, any labels that the fact-checking organization publishes will be visible on the post itself. This helps in the effective distribution of the fact-check and keeps users better informed.

On the flip side, X recently rolled out yet another updated feature that nobody asked for and makes the place less safe by allowing people you’ve blocked to see your posts.

Zero Monetization

Bluesky is a public benefit corporation with the mission “to develop and drive large-scale adoption of technologies for open and decentralized public conversation. The public benefit corporation status allows us to pursue our mission above profit, but we still need to make Bluesky a sustainable service in order to build an open ecosystem that lasts.”

As such, Bluesky currently has no ads or premium features. X is filled with ads, bots and promoted tweets throughout the app. X also charges a fee for premium features that should be available for all including verification, two-factor, etc. Everything is available on Bluesky for all, for free, operating from the funds of investors. Users pay to boost tweets on X and get prioritized in feeds. Everyone is equal in the algorithm on Bluesky.

Open Code

Bluesky is Open Source. X is not, as Elon Musk (manbaby, racist and current owner of X who is acting as co-president after the election) closed the code and owns all your data, ready to sell to the highest bidder. Anyone on Bluesky can check out code and see how it all works. This transparency allows for developers to help grow the platform and flag bugs, so it can run smoothly and safely. At kaleidaweb we know protocols like HTTP are the bedrock of the internet. Bluesky is building open source infrastructure so that social communication can be as open and interoperable as the web itself.

Artificial Intelligence

X is using your data to train AI on their platform. Bluesky’s statement on AI on their platform, “A number of artists and creators have made their home on Bluesky, and we hear their concerns with other platforms training on their data. We do not use any of your content to train generative AI, and have no intention of doing so. AI internally to assist in content moderation, which helps us triage posts and shield human moderators from harmful content. We also use AI in the Discover algorithmic feed to serve you posts that we think you’d like. None of these are Gen AI systems trained on user content.”

Starter Packs

Bluesky has pioneered Starter Packs, which are personalized collections of accounts to follow which allow you to bring curated content directly into your slice of Bluesky. Starter Packs recommended custom feeds and users to help your community find each other. Very cool to get started easily, and stay connected.

Tools of the Trade

With other social media options out there, X and Bluesky look similar, which is helpful for new users, but are very different in how they operate and their visions for their place in society. Consider setting up a Bluesky account for yourself and your business/organization soon. Be sure to download your data archive from X if you choose to delete your account. A simple guide to migrate to Bluesky from X can be found at Bluesky Migration.

Pro tip: Once you get going on Bluesky, use the Sky Follower Bridge app on your Google Chrome browser to instantly find and follow the same users from your Twitter follows on Bluesky. Also check out and subscribe to The Ultimate Directory of tools and applications for Bluesky, a curated collection of all things relating to the Bluesky social media platform.

We can help!

It can be overwhelming and challenging moving yourself or business to a new social media platform. This is what we do best, so let us take care of it all.

We will register your domain, configure your Bluesky account, and get a custom landing page for yourself or your business setup on your new domain in only 3 days. If you have a current X account and want your tweets, follows and content migrated to Bluesky, we can handle all those migration needs as well so you don’t have to.

You’ll have a new(or old) domain name with a custom landing page for yourself or business and whatever old X data you choose to migrate over to your new Bluesky account, which has been verified and configured with your official domain name. Contact us for details!

kaleidaweb will not be posting on X moving forward as we support an open-source social media and embrace equality. Please look for us on all the other social media platforms, but most especially Bluesky moving forward.