In recent weeks, Bluesky has found itself at the center of a rising wave of criticism, with questions circulating around the pace of its user growth, allegations of fostering left-wing echo chambers, and accusations of a humorless user base. A prominent voice among the critics, billionaire investor Mark Cuban, who has provided financial backing to Skylight—a video-based social app built upon Bluesky’s underlying AT Protocol—recently expressed frustration over the platform’s perceived increase in hostile interactions.
On Bluesky, Cuban lamented the deterioration of discourse, noting that conversations on the platform had shifted from engaging dialogues to combative exchanges in which disagreement was often met with inflammatory labels and hostility: “Engagement went from great convos on many topics to agree with me or you are a nazi fascist,” Cuban wrote, attributing this toxicity as a factor pushing some users back to X (formerly known as Twitter).
Unsurprisingly, Elon Musk and X CEO Linda Yaccarino seized on the dissatisfaction among Bluesky users. Musk ridiculed Bluesky as “a bunch of super judgy hall monitors,” while Yaccarino positioned X as the “true global town square,” highlighting a competitive narrative portraying Bluesky negatively.
Yet much of the criticism may overlook the fundamental nature of Bluesky. A substantial opportunity lies in clarifying what Bluesky truly represents: it is not merely a single application aiming solely to rival X, but rather part of a broader, open-source social ecosystem built on the AT Protocol. Without this wider context established in public perception, prevailing discourse risks pigeonholing Bluesky narrowly as simply another partisan alternative focused predominantly on political liberalism.
Indeed, Bluesky did experience explosive user growth due largely to users fleeing X following Elon Musk’s acquisition and subsequent political shifts. In the wake of the November elections, millions migrated, swelling Bluesky’s user base from approximately 9 million in September to 20 million nearly two months later. High-profile figures such as President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton joining the platform contributed further momentum. Today, Bluesky boasts some 36.5 million registered users.
However, popularity among certain demographics has shaped Bluesky’s branding and discourse significantly, particularly around political topics. Such a dynamic can lead a platform into troubled waters, limiting its broader appeal. History suggests partisan-focused networks—like Parler on the right or Telepath on the left—have struggled for long-term success against more mainstream platforms like X.
But herein lies Bluesky’s missed narrative: the platform’s appeal extends beyond its core application. Users dissatisfied with prevailing conversations can shift their BlueSky experience using customized feeds or switch entirely to other specialized apps within the AT Protocol ecosystem. Already, several applications and feed-builders offer tailored experiences that reflect interests outside politics or current news. For instance, Blacksky serves Black communities specifically, while Gander Social caters to Canadian users. Similarly, tools like Graze and Surf allow custom feed creations emphasizing areas such as sports, entertainment, or niche hobbies.
Moreover, Bluesky’s open system includes applications providing photo and video sharing, blogging services, livestreaming capabilities, music platforms, and film and television recommendations. Innovative tools such as Openvibe aggregate content from multiple social media platforms, blending feeds from the likes of Threads, Mastodon, and Bluesky alongside traditional blogging and media outlets via open standards like RSS.
While it is true the team behind Bluesky itself is not always directly responsible for these broader efforts, actively highlighting the wider ecosystem built atop its underlying technology could substantially improve public perception and understanding. Emphasizing the protocol’s versatility and openness challenges the simplified narrative of Bluesky as merely a politically skewed alternative platform.
Ultimately, redefining Bluesky’s public image to articulate clearly its place within a diverse and wider-reaching open-web environment benefits the entire ecosystem. Bluesky’s success hinges not just on competing as another social app but on demonstrating that it represents something fundamentally broader—an open, adaptive social infrastructure with enormous potential beyond simply filling the role of an alternative to X.
