Threads App experiments with filter for real-time search results

Meta’s Threads app is frequently touted as the tech giant’s answer to rival social platforms. However, many former Twitter users who have switched to Threads voice their dissatisfaction with the app’s ability to deliver real-time news and updates. The app’s ‘for you’ feature frequently mixes older content with the latest posts, and the app’s trending topics section limits visibility to only five items at a time. These limitations haven’t gone unnoticed by those who hoped Threads would become a reliable tool for instant information.

In a promising development for these users, Meta is trialing a new search functionality on Threads that promises to prioritize recent content. Daniel Rodriguez, a user of Threads, unveiled this update by sharing a screenshot that detailed the app’s in-testing ability to filter search outcomes by time. Adam Mosseri, a leading executive for Threads, validated the ongoing test aimed at a select group of individuals, enhancing users’ ability to discover pertinent search findings as they happen.

This seemingly small adjustment addresses a significant source of frustration for users who, up until now, have grappled with the app’s inability to facilitate searches for contemporary news and discussions. Although sorting by the most recent doesn’t equate to a fully chronological search, this feature is intended to better highlight posts related to the latest news or current affairs.

The true efficacy of the feature, however, hinges on whether Meta decides to extend the ‘recent’ filter across all discussions within the platform. The demonstrated screenshot exemplified the recency filter on a community-specific thread, one that Mosseri has actively promoted on the application. Although, it’s worth noting that Mosseri’s approach to other time-sensitive subjects has been notably more tepid. In the past, he has expressed reluctance to foster areas involving ‘hard news’.

Moreover, Threads has faced backlash in some quarters for consciously stripping political content from recommendations and obstructing searches for subjects it classifies as ‘potentially sensitive’, such as vaccines and COVID-19—regardless of whether the content breaches the platform’s guidelines.