Nolan LawsonDec 11, 2019
Pretty impressive to see Twitter's CEO explain how awesome the fediverse is without once mentioning the fediverse. Is this some kind of Oulipo-like game? https://twitter.com/jack/status/1204766078468911106
Show threadNolan LawsonDec 11, 2019

Seriously though, my brain is not doing a good job processing this news. Some quick thoughts:

- No mention of ActivityPub/Scuttlebutt/Diaspora/etc, but... "blockchain"? For some reason?
- Jack is totally right about decentralized moderation; one of the best things about the fediverse.
- Whatever standard Twitter decides upon, it will become the de-facto standard. (See: browsers and market share.)
- Struggling to understand what's in it for Twitter in all this.

Show threadNolan LawsonDec 11, 2019

For a moment, let's take Jack at his word that this is something he actually wants to do.

First off, I doubt that whatever standard they choose will be based on ActivityPub, since apparently both Jack and Parag seem to think that the problem with existing standards is: needs moar blockchain!

- https://mobile.twitter.com/jack/status/1204766085037248512
- https://mobile.twitter.com/paraga/status/1204766189139873793

Show threadNolan Lawson
Second, I see interesting comments about how this may be a strategy by Twitter to avoid the responsibility of moderation. But even in a decentralized world, Twitter would have both a client and a server (instance), and both would be under pressure by governments and activists to block other instances, the same as we see on the fediverse today.
Dec 11, 2019 at 5:36pmWeb
Show threadNolan LawsonDec 11, 2019

Third, whatever standard Twitter decides on, clearly they will have the most influence over the ecosystem. I think the right analogy is not Google and Android (https://twitter.com/MastodonProject/status/1204791506143457281) but rather Google and Chrome. Google has a huge amount of influence over W3C/WHATWG without outright control of either, just because of their market share.

Presumably Twitter would have similar control, even if they create an independent commission or W3C Working Group or whatever.

Show threadNolan LawsonDec 11, 2019
(BTW, I actually don't believe that Google is 100% evil with what they're doing in web standards. They do a lot of important work in security, performance, new Web APIs, etc. They just steer things in the kinds of directions that are important to Google; that's all.)
Show threadNolan LawsonDec 11, 2019
One thing I've learned from working in big companies is that when a decision gets made, it's rarely a case of the company/CEO speaking with One Unified Voice and Thus It Was. More often, the story behind these things is just old-fashioned company politics, bureaucracy, etc. Both the "CEO/company is a clear-eyed visionary" and "company has a secret conspiratorial motive" takes are usually wrong.
Show threadNolan LawsonDec 11, 2019
So here's my take: Jack has listened to a few too many Anil Dash podcasts (https://twitter.com/jack/status/1204786758061133826), and maybe he actually is nostalgic for the old, decentralized web and wants to push Twitter in that direction. The rest of the higher-ups disagree, but Jack won't shut up about it, so they're like, "fine Jack, here's 5 headcount, go nuts." They expect him to fail, but they hope this will mollify Jack and his supporters for a few years.
Show threadNolan LawsonDec 11, 2019

Note this is just wild-ass theorizing. My main point is that there is probably a bigger story behind the headline, and that this story may be a lot more prosaic. Hopefully things will become clearer as Twitter builds up this team.

And hey, the good news is that this move sort of validates the fediverse. Twitter doesn't think we're totally nuts! Or they're scared of us! Or something!

Show threadcharlagDec 11, 2019
@nolan Jack's job is to sell snake oil. Or they want even field with Facebook? Or they're afraid of fedi? It's so weird, really.
I'm glad that people in replies said "so ActivityPub?" many times.
Show threadPhelDec 11, 2019
@nolan I love that analysis of company decision making. So often companies are seen too simplified without taking their internal politics and fights for power.