Getty ImagesThe chief executive of the social media network Bluesky – which has exploded in popularity in recent weeks – was unable to give the correct age limit for users on the platform in an interview with the BBC.
While speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live’s Breakfast programme, Jay Graber wrongly said you needed to be 18 to use Bluesky, when the actual age limit is 13.
The issue of whether young people should be able to use social media is a hot topic globally, with Australia proposing a ban for under-16s and the UK saying similar action is “on the table.”
Millions of people signed up to the app since the US election results, some in protest at the role X, formerly Twitter, played in propelling Donald Trump to victory.
Ms Graber put the rapid growth down to the “really great” experience users were having on Bluesky.
“There’s not harassment and bots and spam and a lot of the other problems that plague other platforms,” she said.
13 or 18?
On age verification, Ms Graber told the BBC that Bluesky has “age-gating” when users sign up, by asking people to enter their date of birth.
When asked directly what the age limit was on Bluesky, Ms Graber said: “When you sign up – I’ll have to check – I think it’s like 18 and above.”
Following the interview, Bluesky contacted the BBC to clarify that the minimum age is 13, not 18. They added there are additional settings within the app to ensure content is safe for children.
In a wide-ranging interview with presenter Rick Edwards, she said Bluesky does not try to verify the identification of the user, to ensure people are not lying when signing up.
She said: “We don’t take IDs or anything like that. I know that’s proposed in some places. That’s very private information.
“I think companies like us would want to make sure we’re handling that private user data very responsibly.”
Ms Graber also said moderation on the platform came from a mix of human moderators and automated technology, and they have no plans to introduce “traditional advertising”.
One option being looked at, she said, was making money through subscriptions for users who want extra features on their accounts.
Election defection
Bluesky was developed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, and visually looks how X used to look back in its Twitter days.
Mr Dorsey is no longer part of the team behind it, having stepped down from the board in May last year, and the platform has experienced a surge in sign ups since the results of the US election.
Elon Musk, the owner of X, was a major backer of Donald Trump during his campaign.
He will also be heavily involved in the President’s administration after being named co-head of the new administration’s Department of Government Efficiency.
Political division has lead to some people leaving X in protest since the election, and Bluesky appears to have benefitted.
In September, the company said it had nine million users. This week, it surpassed 20 million.
However that remains far behind X, as well as Threads, a rival platform set up by Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram.
Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer said this week he has “no plans” to join the social media platform.
The Prime Minister told reporters that “at the moment” there are no moves to establish official UK government accounts or a personal one in his name.
He said it is “important for a government” to be able to communicate with “as many people as possible”.
X does not share its total user numbers but it is understood to be measured in the hundreds of millions. Mr Musk himself has 205m followers on his account.
