[jakebsky]

Limited functionality for a specified subset of users counts as "very little" to my mind given that they launched 6 months ago and have a team of hundreds working on it.

But like I said, I sincerely do hope Threads follows through on their plan to federate. But it's just not correct to claim that they already have.

[threeseed]

Maybe you I and understand the software development process differently.

Supporting one user end to end is a huge milestone and the first step in rolling it out to the other hundreds of millions of users. Especially when Threads isn't a standalone platform but is built on top of Instagram which means we could see it integrated with ActivityPub as well.

The fact that Meta cares about ActivityPub at all is a huge win for open, interoperable standards.

[edavis]

I don't know... the whole Threads + ActivityPub thing just seems like Meta trying to keep the regulators at bay rather than them actually embracing the ethos of becoming a major federated social media player.

So launch in July 2023, handful of accounts have AP support in November-ish 2023, full AP support end of 2024? I guess it's not nothing, they did have to bolt something entirely new on top of IG's infrastructure. But for a team that big, feels like we'd be seeing more if it was a true priority for them. Plus Threads leaning towards opt-in AP support which will only inhibit uptake (that was the last I heard, anyway).

I'd be shocked if Instagram ever went with ActivityPub, though.