Jack Dorsey, Evan Williams, and Biz Stone created the online microblogging service Twitter in March 2006 and launched it to the public on July 15, 2006. The founders introduced the group short messaging service (SMS) to the public under the name Twttr, which was later changed to Twitter.
The SMS service provider-turned-social media platform was later renamed “X” by new owner Elon Musk and acquired in October 2022 for a whopping $44 billion.
History of Twitter
Jack Dorsey is believed to have proposed the idea of an SMS service for communicating with small groups during a “all-day brainstorming session” at podcasting company Odeo in 2006. Williams explained that the idea behind the original project’s code name, Twttr, came from Noah Glass, who was inspired by Flickr and the American five-letter SMS short code. They started using Twitter in February 2006. The first Twitter message was posted by Jack Dorsey on March 21, 2006.
Co-founder Jack Dorsey explains the origins of the word – we came across the word “twitter”, and it was just perfect. The definition was “a short burst of inconsequential information.” And that was exactly the product.
Twitter experienced rapid growth during the 2007 South by Southwest Interactive (SXSWi) conference. Twitter usage grew rapidly from 20,000 to 60,000 tweets per day.
The company experienced rapid growth initially, winning the 2009 Webby Award for “Breakout of the Year.” Twitter was also named World of the Year by Global Language Monitor and recognized as a new form of social interaction.
Twitter experienced new growth during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, as usage increased for pandemic-related disinformation.
On June 5, 2021, the Nigerian government indefinitely banned Twitter for spreading disinformation and fake news after Twitter removed tweets by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari. The Nigerian entry ban was criticized by Amnesty International.
Elon Musk acquired Twitter on April 25, 2022 for $44 billion. The deal expired on October 27, 2022, although Musk tried to terminate the deal in July. Shortly after taking over the company, Musk fired the company’s executive team, including CEO Parag Agrawal, and installed himself as the head of the company. On May 17, 2024, Musk changed the company’s name from Twitter to X and officially changed its name from twitter.com to X.com.
Most Followed Accounts on X
- Elon Musk (@elonmusk) 189.7millions
- Barack Obama (@BarackObama) 131.7 million
- Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) 112.1 million
- Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) 110.5 million
- Rihanna (@rihanna) 108.1 million
- Katy Perry (@katyperry) 106.3 million
- Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) 100 million
- Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) 95.3 million
- Donald Trump (@realDonaldTrump) 87.5 million
- Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) 83.1 million
Statista reports that 24.4% of users rated the new logo positively and 19.64% negatively. Also, 40% of users in March said they would be very satisfied with using the platform in a year.
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