Two rival platforms comparable to Instagram and TikTok are growing in popularity
There are alternatives to Instagram and TikTok, some of which are going viral, but these two in particular are open source by and for the community. Pixelfed and Loops are open source.
TikTok’s days may be numbered in the United States. If the government of that country does nothing under Trump, TikTok will shut down on January 19, leaving aside one of its largest and most important communities. Nothing will happen in the rest of the world, but it will be a very severe blow to the social network.
To this we must add the 180-degree change that Meta has made regarding how it recognizes fake content, leaving it up to the community to work with the problems that this can generate.
Two political decisions that many users did not like, leading to a search for alternatives. If Bluesky grows significantly after moving X users, where will TikTok or Instagram users go? There are many options on the internet, but there are very specific ones that are attracting attention because of how they are built, and they are completely open and open source, which is rare today.
I want to introduce you to Pixelfed and Loops. They are two complete clone alternatives to Instagram and TikTok, respectively.
These are two applications and social networks that are developed according to the principles of free and open source software, so anyone can access their code, modify it, or improve it. You can clone it and create your own social network. In addition, they are developed under the Federation protocol that allows interconnection with, for example, Mastodon or Bluesky.
You will notice that it is not a complete product like TikTok or Instagram; these social networks have millions of users who have turned them into the giant networks that they are today. But that is the beauty of seeing this type of project born: you can participate in something from the early days that can end well or badly.