Twitter unveiled on Tuesday a feature that will allow users to post images or messages that will disappear after 24 hours.
These “Fleets” take inspiration from social media competitors, including Snapchat, which popularized this type of feature, and Instagram and Facebook, which followed suit with versions of their own. Technically users could already delete a tweet whenever they want, but Fleets makes it an automatic feature.
“We’ve learned that some people feel more comfortable joining conversations on Twitter with this ephemeral format, so what they’re saying lives just for a moment in time,” Joshua Harris, Twitter’s design director, said in a blog post. “We can create a space with less pressure that allows people to express themselves in a way that feels a bit more safe.”
That thing you didn’t Tweet but wanted to but didn’t but got so close but then were like nah.
We have a place for that now—Fleets!
Rolling out to everyone starting today. pic.twitter.com/auQAHXZMfH
— Twitter (@Twitter) November 17, 2020
The company began testing Fleets in March, and users can expect the feature to pop up on their app in the coming days if it hasn’t appeared already.
Users are already complaining that the feature is having problems. Some have reported that it has caused their app to crash. Twitter told TechCrunch that it is aware of the complaints and is working to address them.
