Bluesky’s Strategic Shift: Capitalizing on X’s Deepfake Crisis with Twitch and Cashtags

Bluesky is betting its new features can outmaneuver X’s deepfake crisis—but users may not trade decades of habit for a few hashtags. The social platform’s iOS app downloads in the U.S. surged 49% (19,500 to 29,000 daily) following X’s deepfake scandal, according to Appfigures data.

This spike coincides with the launch of Twitch live-streaming integration and cashtags ($AAPL format), features designed to challenge X’s dominance in stock market discussions.

The firm says Bluesky typically sees around 4,000 installs in the U.S. per day, highlighting the anomaly created by X’s recent turmoil.

While Bluesky’s new tools are free to use—both the Live Now badge for Twitch and the $AAPL-style cashtags—the platform still faces a hurdle: Pew Research notes influencers remain entrenched on X, suggesting high switching costs for users.

For a mid-sized finance firm, the practical cost-benefit of Bluesky’s cashtags versus X’s stock tools becomes clear. Bluesky’s open-access model eliminates subscription fees for market discussion, whereas X’s monetized stock tools require paid tiers.

However, the firm must weigh this against X’s larger audience of active traders and the risk of deepfake misinformation on either platform.