Social media interoperability project Bluesky names first employees

By Sheila Dang

(Reuters) – Bluesky, a company funded by Twitter Inc to develop a new operating standard for social media, on Thursday will name its first three employees, more than two years after Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey first announced the initiative, according to a blog post seen by Reuters.

Bluesky is working to build an open protocol for social media with the aim of enabling different social platforms to operate together, which would represent a fundamental shift from today’s social media landscape.

The internet is currently dominated by walled-off tech giants like Alphabet Inc’s Google and Meta Platforms Inc’s Facebook, which function unilaterally. But in a future world of decentralized social media platforms, a Twitter user could send a message to a person on Reddit, for instance.

Dorsey, who joined Bluesky’s board in February, has said the vision could take years to come to fruition. Social media users would have greater control over the types of content they see in their feeds, and they could also take their data and easily switch to a different social media app.

Aaron Goldman, who previously worked at Twitter and Google, will join Bluesky as a security engineer, according to the company blog post, which was to be published later on Thursday.

Daniel Holmgren and Paul Frazee will join as protocol engineers. Holmgren previously co-founded a tech startup, and Frazee previously built a web browser called Beaker.

With the initial team assembled, the company will be able to build its first prototype with engagement from other technologists in the industry, Bluesky Chief Executive Officer Jay Graber wrote in the blog post.

(Reporting by Sheila Dang in Dallas; editing by Jonathan Oatis)