Threads Tests Trending Topics, AI Summaries, New Search Tools

As competition among X alternatives heats up, Threads is introducing an expanded Trending Topics feature, as well as new AI Summaries and improved search tools.

Users will now be able to search for posts within specific date ranges or search for posts from a single account.

In the US, where Trending Topics is currently available, users will be able to view AI-powered summaries of what people are discussing, as well as an expanded list of Trending Topics that are popular right now. At present, Threads only shows five trending topics at a time, which will now expand to 15.

However, Meta’s use of curated Trending Topics has had mixed receptions in the past, at least from some quarters. In 2016, Meta invited a group of prominent conservatives to its HQ to discuss allegations that it had been deprioritizing conservative viewpoints in Trending Topics selection on users’ home pages. 

AI-generated summaries on other social media platforms have also had a mixed reception. Since May 2024, X’s premium chatbot Grok has displayed AI-generated summaries of trending issues. However, it has also come under fire for at times generating inaccurate stories based on misinterpreting human users’ posts, such as falsely claiming that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi lost a recent election.

The Meta-owned platform recently picked 15 million new users, according to Threads and Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri, as X has been experiencing its biggest exodus in users since Elon Musk took over the platform post-election.

Threads has continued to add new features as its user base has been expanding. Earlier this month, users gained the ability to build their custom feeds for the first time.

Users need to search for a new topic, select “Create new feed” and then the topic appears next to the “For you” and “Following” tabs the next time they log in.

Threads soon could be looking a lot different, in plenty of other ways. Meta plans to introduce ads on Threads early next year, a move that could come as early as January 2025, if reports from The Information are correct.

About Will McCurdy

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I’m a reporter covering weekend news. Before joining PCMag in 2024, I picked up bylines in BBC News, The Guardian, The Times of London, The Daily Beast, Vice, Slate, Fast Company, The Evening Standard, The i, TechRadar, and Decrypt Media.

I’ve been a PC gamer since you had to install games from multiple CD-ROMs by hand. As a reporter, I’m passionate about the intersection of tech and human lives. I’ve covered everything from crypto scandals to the art world, as well as conspiracy theories, UK politics, and Russia and foreign affairs.

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