Beautiful Virgin Islands

Sunday, Jul 06, 2025

Twitter is evolving beyond tweets

Twitter is evolving beyond tweets

Twitter wants to be more than just 280-character blocks of text.
On Tuesday, the social network announced disappearing tweets and previewed a few more upcoming features, including audio.

Twitter (TWTR) is launching "Fleets," which are posts that disappear after 24 hours, starting Tuesday. The "Stories" format was popularized by Snapchat in 2013, and platforms including Instagram, Facebook (FB) and YouTube have since released their own versions of vanishing posts.

Unlike typical tweets, Fleets do not receive retweets, likes or public replies. Users can only react or respond to them with direct messages, much like on Instagram and Snapchat. Twitter began testing Fleets in Brazil earlier this year. Fleets will appear in a line on top of the feed.

The idea is to reduce the pressure many people feel on social media.

"Some of you tell us that Tweeting is uncomfortable because it feels so public, so permanent, and like there's so much pressure to rack up Retweets and Likes," Twitter said in a blog post. "To help people feel more comfortable, we've been working on a lower pressure way for people to talk about what's happening."

Twitter is also doubling down on audio features, including expanding its test of voice tweets, testing audio in direct messages in Brazil, and introducing a new experiment called "audio spaces," which it expects to be available before the end of the year.

"Audio spaces" is similar to another concept that has recently become popularized by Clubhouse, a buzzy but also controversial platform that is still in invitation-only mode, where users can start "rooms" with certain people leading a discussion and others listening.

Twitter was light on details, but described its feature as a live audio space where multiple people can communicate and discuss or debate a topic. The company emphasized it would like people to feel safe and comfortable in these spaces, although didn't elaborate on what controls that could result in.

Twitter said its feature will initially only be rolled out to a "very small group" of women and those from marginalized backgrounds, both of which are disproportionately impacted by abuse and harassment on the platform, the company said.

When asked about audio spaces on a call with reporters and whether it's trying to emulate what Clubhouse is doing, Twitter product lead Kayvon Beykpour pushed back.

"We need to support other formats. We need to support other use cases that help people have more thoughtful debate, more thoughtful exchanges that you can't pack into 280 characters," he said. "It's not a 'here's an interesting startup doing something interesting, let's try to replicate it.'"

Twitter also teased that it's looking into ways for users to be able to give "private feedback," for example telling someone they crossed a line and need to take a breather. This could take the form of a notification or a nudge from Twitter itself.

Audio and an emphasis on more private communication could bring fresh challenges for Twitter, such as how these features will be effectively moderated. The company also faced criticism for its voice tweets test not having transcription options, which made it inaccessible for people with hearing issues. The company is now working on transcriptions for all media on Twitter, which it expects to roll out next year.

Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence, said Twitter's recent features and tests, such as Fleets, are "overdue."

"Social media is evolving and Twitter needs to catch up," Williamson said. "Fleets give Twitter a way to compete in the 'Stories' arena that Snapchat and Instagram have occupied for years. ... Twitter hasn't moved super quickly when it comes to launching new features, so I'm not surprised that Fleets has been slow to launch as well."

But while Twitter is launching a Stories copycat, other social platforms have already moved on to mimicking the next big thing: TikTok and short-form video. Instagram has launched a product called Reels, while YouTube began testing "Shorts" in India.

Beloved short-form video app Vine, which preceded TikTok, was acquired and then later shut down by Twitter in 2017.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Political Dispute Escalates Between Trump and Musk
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
US Senate Votes to Remove AI Regulation Moratorium from Domestic Policy Bill
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
Jury Deliberations in Diddy Trial Yield Partial Verdict in Serious Criminal Charges
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
King Charles Plans Significant Role for Prince Harry in Coronation
Two Chinese Nationals Arrested for Espionage Activities Against U.S. Navy
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
×