Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta has on Wednesday, officially launched the much-anticipated Twitter-like app called Threads, setting up a rivalry with Twitter by offering a space for real-time conversations online.

Threads function, which is notably Twitter’s key selling point, now creates an alternative for Twitter users who are disgruntled by the changes brought by Elon Musk.

Zuckerberg who owns a social media conglomerate that includes Facebook and Instagram decided to release the app 15 hours earlier than planned, launching it at 7 pm EDT in the US and midnight in the UK. It is now accessible in 100 countries through the Apple and Google app stores. However, due to regulatory concerns, the app will not be available in the EU.

The app bears numerous similarities to Twitter, including its layout and product description. The listing, initially teased earlier this week, highlights its ability to attract a following and facilitate connections with like-minded individuals.

“The vision for Threads is to create an option and friendly public space for conversation,” Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a Threads post following the launch. “We hope to take what Instagram does best and create a new experience around text, ideas, and discussing what’s on your mind.”

According to the app’s listing, Threads is a place where communities can come together to discuss everything from the topics they care about today to what’s trending, mirroring Twitter’s core functions.

“Whatever it is you’re interested in, you can follow and connect directly with your favorite creators and others who love the same things — or build a loyal following of your own to share your ideas, opinions and creativity with the world,” it reads.

Meta announced that messages posted on Threads would be limited to 500 characters. The company also stated that the app would be available in 100 countries through Apple’s iOS and Android platforms.

Upon downloading the app, users are prompted to connect their Instagram accounts, personalize their profiles, and follow the same accounts they already follow on Instagram.

The app’s interface resembles Twitter, featuring a familiar layout, a text-based feed, and the ability to repost and quote other Thread posts. Additionally, it incorporates Instagram’s visual style and allows for seamless sharing of Thread posts directly to Instagram Stories. Verified Instagram accounts are automatically verified on Threads, and users can choose to make their Thread accounts public or private.

As Meta, with its extensive resources and massive user base, enters the market, Threads joins a growing list of Twitter competitors, potentially posing a significant threat to Twitter’s dominance.

The anticipated fight between Musk and Zuckerberg was orchestrated by the former’s move to create a similar app to Twitter.

Last month, Musk responded to a tweet about Threads saying: “I’m sure Earth can’t wait to be exclusively under Zuck’s thumb with no other options,” and followed up with a tweet teasing a cage fight Zuckerberg.

Zuckerberg, posting a screenshot of Musk’s tweet overlaid in an Instagram story, fired back with the caption: “Send Me Location.”

But before the cage fight, Zuckerberg has thrown the first punch with the launch of Threads. The launch of Threads coincides with Twitter’s period of chaos that was amplified during the weekend by Musk’s decision to put temporary limits on the number of tweets users can view within the app.

Though Musk said the restrictions had been applied “to address extreme levels of data scraping and system manipulation,” it stirred resentment from Twitter users.

The development added to the many grudges several Twitter users hold against Musk for introducing unpopular changes since he took over late last year.

Musk has also had a fallout with advertisers who have left Twitter in droves because of his style of running the platform. With a growing number of Twitter users who are dissatisfied with the way Musk is running the platform, Threads may become the sane alternative.

“It will take some time, but I think there should be a public conversation app with 1 billion+ on it. Twitter has had the opportunity to do this but hasn’t nailed it. Hopefully, we will,” Zuckerberg said on Threads.

Since Nigeria’s Hilda Baci won the 2023 Guinness World Record for the longest cooking marathon by an individual in June with a time of 93 hours 11 minutes, displacing a previously set record of 87 hours 45 minutes by an Indian chef, Lata Tondon in 2019, many other Nigerians have been jumping on the GWR trend, proposing and attempting marathons in various endeavours including cooking and body massage, among other activities.

In the spirit of the trend, a proposed three-day “Kissing Marathon Event” called “Kiss-a-Thon” had been announced to take place in Ekiti state by a group identified as Sugartee to break the Guinness World Record for the longest kissing Marathon. The 72-hour Kiss-a-Thon was scheduled to run from Friday, July 7 to Monday, July 10.

However, the Ekiti State Government through the Ministry of Arts, Culture and Tourism on Wednesday has issued a ban on the proposed event, warning the hoteliers’ association in the state against the activity which was described as not only unhealthy and immoral but inimical to the image of the state.

In a letter addressed to the Secretary, Ekiti State Hoteliers’ Association and signed by Adelusi A. L, for the Permanent Secretary, Dele Ogunsemoyin, the Ministry of Arts, Culture, and Tourism, the government warned hoteliers against such unhealthy and immoral acts in their facilities.

The letter reads: “Kiss-A-Thon, as an event is not only absurd, unhealthy, immoral and capable of denigrating the image of the state, it is a programme that runs counter to the values of the people of the state and therefore capable of plunging our youths morally backward.

“The Ministry of Arts, Culture and Tourism hereby prohibits the hosting of such event or any other events like it in any facility that wishes to continue to operate lawfully in Ekiti State.

“You are hereby requested to convey the content of this notice to the members of Ekiti State Hoteliers’ Association to effectively monitor their outlets against being used negatively to cause embarrassment to the government and people of Ekiti State.”

There’s nothing more desired than being early on a cryptocurrency; the same goes for other financial markets, but the crypto market has been shown to give the highest returns. With hope building up towards a bull market, you want to get in on future opportunities early to secure profits on the way up. Here are three early cryptocurrencies to enter.

Apecoin (APE)

Apecoin (APE) is an Ethereum-based gaming token created by Yuga Labs as a utility token for its ecosystem. It’s referred to as a gaming token because it’s proposed as an in-game asset on the Yuga Labs game in development. The game is projected to launch this year, and Apecoin (APE) could enjoy some positive price action from the game launch. Apecoin backs the strongest community in the NFT landscape, which consists of collections like Bored Ape Yacht Club, Mutant Ape Yacht Club, and a few other highly valued collections. Apecoin (APE) launched as a drop to community holders of these NFTs, and users got up to $50,000 million worth of tokens. Apecoin (APE) launched very early into the bear market, and in Q1 of 2022, it had an impressive price trend which was suppressed by the dwindling market condition. However, it’s a prospective early cryptocurrency to get in on for the short term.

Arbitrum (ARB)

Arbitrum (ARB) is a top Ethereum layer-2 solution still in its early phase in the market. Although Arbitrum has existed in the market since 2021, its native token only launched in March 2023, and it has a lot of room to grow. In the little time ARB emerged, it has pushed market excitement to a new level especially powering some DeFi volume. Arbitrum is now the fourth largest network for DeFi and has established itself as the top alternative to Ethereum should the bull season return. ARB is in a good position for some market volume, and it’s still relatively early to load up on some tokens.

Uwerx (WERX)

Uwerx offers the earliest opportunity on this list as the project is still on presale. Presale offers you the lowest you’ll ever be able to get the token, and as such, it’s always a good low-risk play to go all in for solid projects like Uwerx. Uwerx is a new Ethereum-based freelance solution that creates a unique platform for the gig economy.

This is unlike anything the gig market has ever seen, and it offers some valuable solutions the industry desperately needs. Uwerx stands out with its 1% fee outbidding the industry average of 10% – 20%. In addition to low fees, it offers a number of blockchain-enabled features that allow users to retain more value.

Uwerx presale is an opportunity to get in very early as its Stage 5 presale is offering the token at $0.047725. The price will increase once Stage 5 is over, so you should take this opportunity quickly and not leave profit on the table.

This week, a functional prototype, featuring both freelancer and client registration pages, will be made available during the presale. The launch of the Uwerx Vault feature is also on the horizon, set for next week. Furthermore, we will be conducting a survey to decide on the date for the test airdrop.

Enter the Uwerx presale now and claim a 15% bonus on your purchase.

Presale: invest.uwerx.network

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