Elon Musk reacts to Threads, says, ‘Competition is fine, cheating is not’

Twitter is considering legal action against Meta, the parent company of Instagram, over its recently launched app called Threads. 

In a letter obtained by Semafor, Twitter accuses Meta of unlawfully using its trade secrets and intellectual property. The letter, written by Elon Musk’s lawyer, Alex Spiro, claims that Meta hired former Twitter employees who had access to confidential information, suggesting that they may have used that knowledge to develop Threads.

“We have serious concerns that Meta has engaged in systematic, willful, and unlawful misappropriation of Twitter’s trade secrets and other intellectual property,” said Spiro in the letter.

In response to the accusations, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone denied the involvement of any former Twitter employees on the Threads team, noting, “No one on the Threads engineering team is a former Twitter employee — that’s just not a thing.”

The launch of Threads has intensified the competition between Elon Musk’s Twitter and Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta. Threads, a text-based conversation app, garnered significant attention and millions of sign-ups within the first 24 hours after its release. The app is seen as a potential alternative for users seeking to move away from Twitter, which has faced challenges under Musk’s ownership.

Elon Musk has responded to the Threads launch by sharing his thoughts on Twitter. In one tweet, he retweeted an image comparing the Threads logo to a tapeworm and added the comment, “Metaphorically too.” 

In another post, he highlighted the importance of fair competition, asserting, “Competition is fine, cheating is not.”

While Meta’s new app has received positive feedback and impressive download numbers, success is not guaranteed. Meta has a history of launching standalone apps that were later shut down, and Threads is still in its early stages.

Elon Musk expressed disappointment with Meta’s launch of the Threads app, viewing it as an attempt to monopolise the social media space.

Data privacy concerns have also emerged regarding Threads. The app was launched in over 100 countries, but it is notably unavailable in the European Union due to strict privacy regulations. Some users express reservations about Meta’s data collection practices and cite the Digital Markets Act, a law that imposes rules on internet companies, as a reason for their reluctance to fully embrace Threads.

This potential legal battle over trade secrets is not uncommon in the tech industry. Past cases, such as the dispute between Waymo and Uber, have resulted in significant consequences. The outcome of the ongoing Twitter-Meta conflict will have implications for both platforms and the wider social media landscape.