Bluesky Surges to 40 Million Users, Rolls Out ‘Dislikes’ Beta – Social Media’s Next Big Shake-Up?
By Mark Smith
Bluesky, the Twitter exile’s darling, just crossed a monumental threshold, but it’s the sneaky new feature dropping that could finally tip the scales in the endless scroll wars. With 40 million users now calling it home, the decentralized upstart is beta-testing “dislikes”—a downvote button poised to refine feeds like never before, amid a Halloween weekend buzz that’s got tech watchers glued. As searches for “Bluesky 40 million users,” “dislikes beta Bluesky,” “social media personalization 2025,” “Bluesky vs Twitter,” and “decentralized social platforms” explode, this milestone isn’t just numbers—it’s a rebellion against algorithm overlords.
The announcement landed Friday via Bluesky’s official channels, pegging total sign-ups at 40 million as of October 31, 2025—a staggering leap from 25 million in July and just 13 million at the start of the year. Growth turbocharged post-U.S. election, with over a million newbies fleeing X’s MAGA tilt for Bluesky’s chronological bliss and lighter moderation vibe. CEO Jay Graber hailed it as “proof that people crave control over their timelines,” crediting open-source roots and AT Protocol for the viral spread—no Big Tech gatekeepers required.
Enter the ‘dislikes’ beta: Unlike X’s elusive Grok experiments, this one’s user-facing and immediate. Tapping the broken heart icon on posts will flag content for the algorithm, helping curate “healthier, more relevant” feeds without burying creators. Rollout starts next week for select iOS and web users, with Android following, and Bluesky promises transparency—no shadowbans, just smarter signals layered atop likes, reposts, and follows. It’s a nod to Reddit’s upvote/downvote ethos, but tuned for microblogging: Expect fewer rage-bait threads and more niche convos on everything from indie games to climate hacks.
Skeptics and superfans are clashing online. Tech analyst Jane Manchun Wong, who reverse-engineered the feature early, tweeted: “Dislikes could kill spam at the source—Bluesky’s finally weaponizing user intent against toxicity.” Over on X, reactions range from hype—”Bluesky’s dislikes beta might make it the anti-Elon haven we need” (@moneybeatnews, racking 50 likes in hours)—to shade: “40 million? Still dwarfed by Threads’ 200M. Cute, but catch up” from a Musk stan. Reddit’s r/BlueskySocial lit up with 200+ upvotes on a thread gushing over the user surge: “From 1.5M DAUs in September to this? We’re building the fediverse for real.” Even Wikipedia’s page update sparked debates on sustainability, noting a dip in daily actives from March peaks—though Graber counters with “quality over quantity” retention metrics.
For U.S. techies and creators, this duo packs a punch. Economically, Bluesky’s ascent juices the $500 billion social ad market, luring brands wary of X’s volatility—think Patagonia eyeing custom feeds for eco-campaigns, potentially adding 10,000 creator gigs by mid-2026. Lifestyle lift? Dislikes could reclaim your doomscroll hour, surfacing joy-sparking posts over outrage bait, perfect for post-election detox in swing states like Pennsylvania. Politically, it’s a decentralization flex: As Trump 2.0 eyes content regs, Bluesky’s open protocol dodges single-point censorship, empowering voices from BLM organizers to indie journalists in a fractured info-scape.
Bluesky’s 40 million users milestone and dislikes beta launch signal a maturing challenger, with social media personalization 2025 evolving, Bluesky vs Twitter rivalries heating, and decentralized social platforms gaining steam. As beta testers tweak their timelines next week, the real test? Whether downvotes democratize discovery or just amplify the echo—either way, the fediverse just got feistier.
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