Decentralization, AT Protocol and Bluesky 101

Is this gonna replace Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and all of the centralized apps we’re using now?

The Story Begins…

The AT Protocol journey began in 2019, when Twitter (led by Jack Dorsey) funded Bluesky Social as an independent research project to focus on decentralization.

The objective was straightforward: to create an open standard for social media that would grant users portable identities and control over the algorithm shaping their feeds, by preventing platform lock-in.

The team, led by Jay Graber (CEO of Bluesky), developed the protocol and released it publicly as the AT Protocol in 2022. It now powers the Bluesky app, and serves as the foundation for a new, user-controlled social web.

Centralized vs Decentralized

Own your data with Decentralized apps © Farouk Hamzaoui

• In centralized apps such as Instagram, TikTok, etc., one company controls everything: your posts, your account, and the rules. If the platform shuts down, your profile disappears with it.
• In decentralized apps such as Bluesky, your data is stored across multiple servers, giving you greater control and making it more difficult for any single entity to censor or delete your presence.

What’s AT protocol?

The Authenticated Transfer Protocol, a.k.a @ptorocol or (atproto) is a comprehensive framework designed to support various types of social applications, not just the microblogging platforms like Bluesky.

Think of it as a shared infrastructure that enables developers to build web apps such as:

• SkyFeed : a real-time custom feed builder
• Streamplace: an open-source livestreaming built on the atproto
• Leaflut.pub: a tool for creating and sharing long-form documents and blogs

The ultimate goal of this protocol is to bring everything together in one place, with a unified login, allowing users to share content without having to create a new account for every app.

Why it’s different from centralized protocols?

1. Ownership and Portability: users have the ability to move from one application’s data service to another without losing their their digital assets including their unique username, content or social metrics, etc.
2. Algorithmic freedom: instead of relying on one algorithm to dictate what appears on your feed, the AT protocol gives users the power to create their own custom feed, unlike centralized platforms like TikTok, Instagram..)
3. Custom feeds: you can design your feed display around any area of interest. If you are a fan of science, basketball, politics, psychology — you can tailor your feed accordingly.
4. Ad free: unlike centralized social media, atproto platforms are ad-free, allowing users to scroll and share content without seeing a single paid advertisement.

What are the challenges?

Decentralized platforms, like any other platform, face several challenges, especially when it comes to user adoption, security and content moderation:

1. User adoption: new users find the platform as less valuable than centralized apps due to a lower volume and reduced consistency of content related to their niche interests.
2. Security: operating an app comes with a considerable security cost. Managing your own server requires significant effort to ensure great security and users data protection.
3. App moderation: one of the most difficult challenges to Bluesky is keeping pace with moderation requests. Their moderation team is staffed 24/7 to review reports as quickly as they can, raising the need for significant resources to handle complex abuse cases.

Want to start your journey on Bluesky?

I’ve used Bluesky for a short time now. What immediately stands out is that it’s ad-free, as I mentioned earlier, and it delivers a wide range of topics that are aligned with what you care about.

Bluesky, Twitter’s 1st rival © Farouk Hamzaoui

Here are some tips on where to start:

Observe what’s going on

create an account, prepare your profile, and explore the app’s features.

Experiment Custom feeds

Start by looking for content categories you’re interested in. Once you have done this, categorize them and share your posts on those feeds. You will likely get more engagement when sharing content on themed feeds than on random ones.

Build your community

Focus on making meaningful connections (if you like to paint, connect with people interested in painting) and be curious about many topics.

Start sharing

The more your share, the more credibility and connections you can get. Your shared content could be your morning coffee, your daily quote, or even a simple post about the weather in your city.Use these post to engage with others about the that topic.

A personal take on Bluesky

AT protocol and Bluesky are inseparable © Farouk Hamzaoui

Bluesky is constantly updating its platform with new functionalities, such as video uploading and constructive conversation prompts. These additions are making the app as intuitive as possible.

The company revealed: “we are seeing more people setting up small businesses and creating new apps and custom feeds directly on the AT protocol. “

For now, I see the platform as the clear leader of a new era of social media, actively challenging centralized giants like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

While the goal is ambitious and user adoption remains a major challenge, the momentum is undeniable.

If you enjoyed reading this article, drop your thoughts in the comment section!

About this article

This article has been written by a student on the Grenoble Ecole de Management’s Advanced Masters in Digital Strategy Management. As part of a content creation assignment, students are given the task of writing articles based on their digital interests and disseminating the articles online. Articles are marked but we make minimal changes to the content. Thanks for reading! James Barisic, Programme Director, MS DSM.