Bluesky, the decentralized social network founded as an alternative to X (formerly Twitter), has reached a major milestone of 40 million users. Alongside this growth, the platform announced a new “dislikes” feature in beta, designed to help improve personalization across its main Discover feed and other areas of the app.
Dislikes to Shape Personalized Feeds
With the upcoming dislikes beta, users will soon be able to mark posts they prefer not to see. Bluesky says these signals will be used to fine-tune the platform’s recommendation system, reducing unwanted or irrelevant content. The company emphasizes that “dislikes” won’t publicly shame creators but will instead teach the algorithm what users find unappealing. Over time, this feature will influence not just feed ranking, but also how replies and conversations are ordered.
Focus on Healthier Conversations
The new update arrives after a month of tension on the platform regarding moderation decisions. Some users have called for Bluesky to take a stronger stance against harassment and harmful content. However, the company continues to focus on empowering users with tools to customize their own experience.
Currently, Bluesky offers features like moderation lists, content filters, muted words, and the ability to subscribe to external moderation providers. The platform also lets users detach quote posts, reducing unwanted attention and discouraging the “dunking” culture often associated with Twitter/X.
Improved Ranking and Reply System
In addition to dislikes, Bluesky is testing updates to its conversation ranking model. A new “social neighborhoods” system will map out users’ interactions to show replies from people they engage with most frequently. This approach aims to make threads feel more personal and easier to follow a problem that has plagued competitors like Threads.
Bluesky also confirmed improvements in detecting toxic, spammy, or off-topic replies, which will now be downranked in feeds and notifications. Furthermore, the Reply button now opens the entire thread first, encouraging users to read the context before responding.
With these updates, Bluesky hopes to foster a more genuine, respectful, and engaging environment as it continues its rapid growth in the social media landscape.
