Instagram wants you to be closer with your friends with a new chat app – Threads

We reported some weeks that Facebook was working on another messaging app to compete with Snapchat. Now it has launched the app. It is called Threads by Instagram.

Facebook calls the app “Threads by Instagram – a new camera-first messaging app that helps you stay connected to your close friends.”

With Threads, you can communicate what you’re doing and how you’re feeling through photos and videos with your very close friends or family in a private space.

Threads is a standalone app designed with privacy, speed, and your close connections in mind. You can share photos, videos, messages, Stories, and more with your Instagram close friends list. You are in control of who can reach you on Threads, and you can customize the experience around the people who matter most. 

Threads is the fastest way to share a photo or video with your close friends on Instagram. It opens directly to the camera and allows you to add shortcuts, so you can share what you’re doing in just two taps.

One of the new features of Threads is “Status”. You can choose from a suggested status, create your own, or turn on Auto Status, which automatically shares little bits of context on where you are without giving away your coordinates. Only your close friends will see your status, and it’s completely opt-in.

Threads will begin rolling out globally today. It is rolling out now on iOS and Android.