March 13, 2019

Twitter wants to hide how many retweets, likes your tweets receive

The social media company introduced a new prototype app at SXSW on Wednesday

By Adam Hermann
PhillyVoice Staff

Twitter grabbed the spotlight Wednesday at SXSW, the annual meeting of tech minds and people who hold themselves in high esteem, with a new prototype version of its app that would change the game entirely.

The new prototype app, called “twttr”, is Twitter, but designed towards making the site a place for healthier conversations, led by CEO Jack Dorsey’s year-long emphasis on what he calls civility.

Twttr’s biggest change is a doozy: the prototype removes the displays of retweet and like counts on individual replies to tweets, according to NBC News.

At least, it removes the numbers at first.

The interactions can still be found with an extra tap on an individual tweet, but as you scroll down the replies to a given tweet, you won’t immediately know whether the tweet you just laughed at has already gone viral, or if it’s gone un-shared.

The company is still accepting applications for its prototype program, it tweeted Wednesday, which means it’s not too late to try and get your hands on these crazy features. This is still a prototype, after all. Twttr’s features might never actually reach the public in a full release – like that time Instagram messed around with horizontal scrolling.

The company is also rolling out a revamped camera feature in its flagship Twitter app:

See it? Tweet it! Our updated camera is just a swipe away, so you get the shot fast. Rolling out to all of you over the next few days. pic.twitter.com/moOEFO2nQq
— Twitter (@Twitter) March 13, 2019