What Happened to Bluesky?

Bluesky began in 2019 as an internal research initiative within Twitter, spearheaded by then-CEO Jack Dorsey, with the ambitious goal of developing an open and decentralized protocol for social media. The project aimed to address concerns about centralized control and content moderation prevalent in existing platforms. In 2021, Bluesky spun off to become an independent Public Benefit Corporation, appointing Jay Graber as its CEO, to ensure its mission remained focused on public benefit rather than corporate incentives.

The development of the underlying AT Protocol accelerated in 2022, particularly after Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter and the subsequent severing of ties between the two entities. This period marked a key turning point, as Bluesky solidified its independent path. It launched as an invitation-only iOS beta in February 2023, gradually expanding to Android and opening its code as open source.

A major turning point occurred in February 2024 when Bluesky opened registrations to the general public, moving beyond its invite-only phase. This move, coupled with growing dissatisfaction among users of X (formerly Twitter), fueled a significant surge in its user base. By October 2024, it had reached 13 million users, and by May 2026, it boasted over 44 million registered users globally. However, despite this rapid growth in registered users, daily active usage saw a 40% year-over-year decline by October 2025, indicating challenges in user retention.

In 2026, Bluesky has continued to refine its platform and expand its ecosystem. In January, it unveiled a comprehensive roadmap focusing on improving the Discover feed with topic tagging and better recommendations, enhancing real-time experiences for live events, and adding fundamental features like drafts and longer video support. A significant leadership change occurred in March 2026, with Jay Graber transitioning to Chief Innovation Officer and Toni Schneider initially serving as interim CEO, before being named permanent CEO in July 2026. The company also quietly raised a $100 million Series B funding round in April 2025, which was publicly disclosed in March 2026, to further scale development.

As of September 30, 2026, Bluesky remains an active and evolving platform. Recent updates in August 2026 included the introduction of group chats, the ability to reply to specific messages, and personalized QR code sharing for profiles. The platform also plans to introduce a new 'Community' feature later in 2026 to foster deeper interactions within niche groups. While generally operational, Bluesky experienced service outages on September 29, 2026, which were resolved by the current date. Its focus on user control, custom feeds, and the open AT Protocol continues to differentiate it from centralized competitors, aiming to build a more open and community-driven social web.