Users flock to Bluesky after X ban in Brazil

In a dramatic twist, Brazil’s Supreme Court just handed Elon Musk’s X (formerly known as Twitter) a one-way ticket out of the country. And while X is packing its bags, another app is having its moment in the Brazilian sun — Bluesky.

The once-under-the-radar microblogging platform, Bluesky, has been basking in the limelight since the Brazilian ban hammer dropped on X. In fact, Bluesky is positively thriving, with a whopping 500,000 new users flocking to the platform in just two days. To put that into perspective, Bluesky is now perched comfortably at number one on Brazil’s iPhone app chart, with Meta’s Threads trailing behind in the number two spot.

Bluesky’s CEO, Jay Graber, couldn’t resist a bit of playful bragging, posting, “Good job Brazil, you made the right choice.” And who can blame her? This is a massive win for a platform that only fully opened its doors to the public in February and has been charming users with its self-deprecating humor, dubbing itself “the short king of social apps.”

For those unfamiliar with Bluesky’s origin story, it started life in 2019 as a Twitter-backed initiative aimed at building a decentralized social protocol. Fast forward a few years, and Bluesky is now flying solo as an independent public benefit corporation. Even Twitter founder Jack Dorsey has stepped away from the board, leaving Bluesky to chart its own course.

Meanwhile, over in Musk’s corner, things have been getting heated. X has been locked in a bitter legal showdown with Brazil’s Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. The feud began when X refused to block certain accounts accused of spreading election disinformation — a move that didn’t sit well with Moraes, who’s been on a mission to clean up the digital space. The result? X was given the boot, with a stern warning that the platform would be banned if it didn’t comply with the court’s demands.

X’s response? An indignant exit from Brazil, complete with Musk lamenting the state of free speech in the country. But Moraes wasn’t having it. Not only did he follow through on the ban, but he also slapped a fine on users who try to sneak back into X’s digital domain using VPNs. The fine? A cool R$50,000 ($8,910). Ouch.

As X exits the stage, Bluesky is stepping into the spotlight, and it’s clear that the Brazilian audience is loving the new show. With all-time highs in activity and millions of users now on board, Bluesky is proving that sometimes a little adversity is all it takes for a small platform to rise to the occasion.

You can download the Bluesky app on Android and iOS app stores.