Jack Dorsey explains his departure from Bluesky and decision to delete account

Jack Dorsey, the co-founder of Twitter and X, made headlines recently after publicly exiting the board of Bluesky, a rival platform to Twitter/X. In a Thursday interview with Founders Fund’s Mike Solana, Dorsey explained his decision to leave Bluesky, stating that the platform was originally intended to be an open-source protocol for Twitter to utilize, not a separate entity with external funding.

Bluesky started as a research project within Twitter in 2019 to create a common operating standard for social media platforms. However, it became its own company in 2022 and received $8 million in venture capital funding in July 2023. Dorsey expressed disappointment with the direction Bluesky was taking, feeling that it was repeating the mistakes he saw at Twitter/X.

In response to Dorsey’s comments, Bluesky CEO Jay Graber defended the platform, stating that Bluesky is structurally open in a way that Twitter has never been. Graber emphasized that Bluesky is designed to be user-friendly on the surface while offering endless customization options underneath.

Bluesky’s protocol engineer, Paul Frazee, also weighed in on the debate, calling unmoderated spaces a “ridiculous idea” and highlighting the importance of checks and balances in online communities.

Dorsey’s departure from Bluesky comes amidst ongoing discussions about the future of social media platforms and the role of moderation in creating safe online spaces. As the debate continues, it remains to be seen how platforms like Bluesky will evolve to meet the changing needs of users in the digital age.