Bluesky teases 2026 roadmap: A better Discover feed, real-time features, and more

Bluesky Bets Big on Algorithms, Real-Time Feeds, and Ecosystem Growth as It Tackles Basic Feature Gaps

Social network Bluesky is teasing its roadmap for the year ahead, emphasizing a focus on improving the app’s algorithmic Discover feed, offering better recommendations on who to follow, giving the app more of a real-time feel, and enhancing interoperability with other apps built on its underlying AT Protocol.

At the same time, the company admitted that it needs to work on getting the “basics” right, too.

Launched to the public in early 2024 after an invite-only period, the decentralized X and Threads alternative has since scaled to over 42 million users, according to data sourced directly from the Bluesky API for developers.

Though it’s differentiated from mainstream social media with its custom feeds and configurable algorithms, Bluesky hasn’t caught up to rivals with regard to basic features, like private accounts, drafts, support for longer videos, and more.

Bluesky’s head of product, Alex Benzer, acknowledged some of these concerns in a new post on the company’s website, where he said that the “basics need to be solid” before Bluesky can expect users to stick around.

Those remarks come after a usage slowdown on Bluesky, which saw a 40% year-over-year drop in daily active users as of October 2025, according to data from market intelligence provider Similarweb, as reported by Forbes.

Benzer outlined several key areas where Bluesky plans to improve:

1. Basic Features First

• Drafts: Users have been clamoring for this feature, and it’s finally on the way.
• Media Handling: Three-minute-long videos aren’t enough—Bluesky plans to support longer videos and faster uploads.
• Photo Limits: Users want to post more than four photos at a time, and Bluesky is listening.
• Thread Creation: Making threads should be easier and more intuitive.

2. Discover Feed Enhancements

• Topic Tags: Bluesky plans to add topic tags to guide users to posts related to their interests.
• Better Recommendations: Improving “Who to Follow” suggestions to help users find high-quality connections.

3. Real-Time Feel

• Live Events: Bluesky is building curation tools to make high-quality and timely custom feeds available during live events like sports or political moments.
• Hanging Out: The team is exploring new features within feeds that would make these feeds feel “less like just scrolling through posts and more like hanging out.”

4. Ecosystem Growth

• Interoperability: Bluesky plans to improve interoperability with other apps built on the AT Protocol, like Twitch and Streamplace.
• LIVE Badges: If you go live on Twitch or Streamplace, you’ll see a LIVE badge appear on your profile photo on Bluesky.

While Bluesky has succeeded in adding users, actual usage on Bluesky ebbs and flows, with surges often timed to changes at X or moments of political tension. Meanwhile, Meta’s Threads has become the next-nearest competitor to X, and new third-party data indicates that Threads is now outpacing X in daily mobile users.

Threads’ main advantage is that it’s backed by the resources of a tech giant, allowing for heavy cross-promotion, easier onboarding, and tons of resources. As a result, Threads has been rapidly shipping new features over the past year or so, including things like interest-based communities, better filters, DMs, long-form text, and disappearing posts.

Bluesky’s roadmap for the year ahead is ambitious, but it’s clear that the company is focused on addressing user concerns and improving the overall experience. Whether it can catch up to rivals like Threads and X remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: Bluesky is not resting on its laurels.

Tags and Viral Phrases:

• Bluesky roadmap 2026
• Decentralized social media
• AT Protocol
• Bluesky vs Threads
• Bluesky vs X
• Social media innovation
• Real-time feeds
• Custom algorithms
• Ecosystem growth
• Interoperability
• LIVE badges
• Topic tags
• Better recommendations
• Drafts feature
• Media handling
• Photo limits
• Thread creation
• User experience
• Basic features
• Usage slowdown
• Daily active users
• Market intelligence
• Similarweb
• Forbes report
• TechCrunch event
• Boston, MA
• June 23, 2026
• Alex Benzer
• Head of product
• Invite-only period
• 42 million users
• API data
• Custom feeds
• Configurable algorithms
• Private accounts
• Longer videos
• Cross-promotion
• Easier onboarding
• Creator content
• Political tension
• Live events
• Sports
• Elections
• Curation tools
• Hanging out
• Twitch integration
• Streamplace
• LIVE badge
• Profile photo
• Ecosystem
• Atmosphere
• Third-party data
• Mobile users
• Desktop web
• Tech giant
• Heavy resources
• Rapid shipping
• Interest-based communities
• Better filters
• DMs
• Long-form text
• Disappearing posts
• User concerns
• Overall experience
• Catching up
• Rivals
• Resting on laurels

,