Truth Social is finally here…sort of.
Former-president Donald Trump's very own social media platform officially went live in Apple's App Store on Monday, President's Day. However, the launch of Truth Social has not been pretty. Bugs, long waitlists, and various other problems have left people asking a lot of questions. This comes with the territory though. Truth Social is a Donald Trump product, after all.
After Trump was booted off Twitter and Facebook in the aftermath of the pro-Trump mob storming the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021, it seemed like only a matter of time before he disseminated his daily thoughts and opinions online through a new medium. He tried blogging. It didn't work out.
Then, in October 2021, Trump announced that his long-anticipated social networking platform, Truth Social, was on the way. And that's when Truth Social's troubles began.
Trolls immediately found the unreleased version of the site, which wasn't supposed to be public, and defaced it with fake accounts and memes like Pig Poop Balls. Shortly after that, internet sleuths dug into the website's terms of service and found that Trump and his team were violating the licensing agreement from Mastodon, the open-source software Truth Social is built upon. (Truth Social eventually updated its licensing to adhere to Mastodon's requirements.)
Now that Trump's Twitter clone is accepting user registrations from the public, there's a slew of new problems and an assortment of new questions on everyone's mind.
Does Truth Social Have a waitlist?
Yes, the Truth Social app may have officially launched on Feb. 21, but the vast majority of people can't actually use the platform. Upon signing up for Truth Social with a name and email, users are allowed to reserve their username. But then, they are put in a line and given a number.
"Thank you for joining!" reads the Truth Social prompt. "Due to massive demand, we have placed you on our waitlist."
Truth Social started accepting around 500 beta users via invite last week. It's unclear how many users have been accepted onto the platform since the app actually launched. Waitlist features aren't out of the norm for new social apps. However, usually, there's a viral marketing aspect where users can invite friends to join the platform in order to move up a place in the line. There's no such incentive feature here.
So, is it actually due to "massive demand?" Let's find out.
How popular is Truth Social?
We all know that Trump cares deeply about big numbers – whether it be TV ratings, social media shares, sketchy business deals – you name it. The braggadocios face of the modern Republican Party loves to tout success. So, naturally, when Truth Social hit number one on Apple's App Store charts for free, non-gaming apps, Trump supporters boasted about the platform's popularity.
But, that begs the question: How many downloads has Truth Social actually received?
According to app analytics firm Apptopia, Truth Social has received an estimated 350,000 downloads by the end of Tuesday. Remember, the app officially launched Monday.
You may have seen waitlist numbers that are higher than that — it's unclear how those numbers are being given out. An Apptopia spokesperson explained to Mashable that the waitlist number they received in the app and the number they received via email were off by around 80,000 places.
I personally signed up for the app about an hour after my App Store "pre-order" notification let me know Truth Social went live. At first, I was placed at around 11,000 on the waitlist. The next time I reopened the app, Truth Social had pushed me back in the line to where I sit now at around 100,000.
What's is the "missed a step" error in Truth Social?
Waitlist issues aren't the only glitches on the Truth Social app. Some users who attempted to sign up received an error message preventing them from even reserving a spot on the list.
“Oops, looks like you have missed a step,” reads the error message some have received when attempting to input their email address.
According to reports from those who have received the error prompt, it appears that the message shows up when trying to use certain email address domains. For example, some users have said that changing their email from a Yahoo email address to a Gmail address resolved the issue.
What is the controversy with the Truth Social logo?
Aside from the glitches, Truth Social is also once again dealing with potential legal problems.
Some users noticed that the logo for Truth Social bared a striking resemblance to the logo for Trailar, a UK solar vehicle company.
The two logos do look quite similar and Trailar seemed to be having a bit of fun with it on Twitter, tagging the Trump family in a sarcastic tweet. Since the tweet, however, it seems the company has taken a more serious stance. According to a statement from Trailar provided to The Daily Beast, the company is "now seeking legal advice to understand next steps and options available to protect our brand."
Will Trump make money off Truth Social? What is the SPAC?
Truth Social is essentially a social network with approximately 500 known users right now. Yet, you can already invest in Truth Social on the stock market? How?
Back in October, the social network's parent company, Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) merged with Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC), a publicly-traded SPAC. What's an SPAC? Basically, SPACs are shell companies that are listed on the stock exchange with the intent to acquire a company or partner with a third-party in order to provide that entity with a stock listing.
While the SPAC is currently under SEC investigation for "potentially skirting securities laws," thanks to the structure, Truth Social and the rest of TMTG claims it has a market valuation of around US$19 billion.
When will Truth Social actually launch?
The only concrete date that was ever listed for a Truth Social launch was Feb. 21. And, as we know, that date came and went and all most iPhone users got was an app that doled out spots on a waitlist.
But, reports prior to President's Day had strongly insinuated that the actual launch of the Truth Social platform was going to be pushed back. According to TIME, TMTG CEO Devin Nunes said the platform would launch by March 31.
Is there an Android version of Truth Social?
No. There is currently no Android app for Truth Social. If you're an Android user, there's currently no timeline for a Truth Social Android app.
Will there truly be "free speech" on Truth Social?
Probably not. Truth Social has rules and terms of use like any other social network. Users who have been accepted into the beta program have shared that certain types of content have been hidden. Users on the waitlist have reported that their accounts have been banned as well.
And if you're wondering how an account could be banned without ever posting a single piece of content, you're going to have to ask CEO Devin Nunes about that.
Follow Mashable SEA on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Telegram.
