Bluebird’s Tweet.app revives parts of Twitter with user-controlled moderation

Twitter is not returning, but Bluebird, Inc. is trying to build a smaller alternative with Tweet.app. The platform follows the 2023 rebrand of Twitter to X, which came after Elon Musk bought Twitter in 2022.

Bluebird President and General Counsel Stephen Coates said the company first tried to revive the Twitter brand. After X sought a federal injunction over the “Tweet” and “Twitter” trademarks, Bluebird launched Twitter.now and later changed the service’s name to Tweet.app. Coates said the company does not plan to use Twitter’s blue bird logo.

Tweet.app has about 8,000 users and remains pay-only. Revenue supports a team of 10 employees and contractors while the company develops the platform and adjusts its moderation filters. The service uses AI, including the beta Vera tool, to assess misinformation and assign a score.

Coates said members will eventually be able to set how much misinformation they want filtered. The company’s stated approach is “Freedom of speech but not freedom of reach.” He described the project as an experiment and said Bluebird is optimistic that it will prevail on the “Tweet” name, while acknowledging that success is not guaranteed.

Tweet.app resembles older Twitter and aims to give users more control over the algorithm. Coates said the platform may attract people through nostalgia and retain them through that control and experience.