Intervju med T2 Social

T2.Social er et helt nytt sosialt medie, som i utgangspunktet ønsker å bli det Twitter var i starten. De ønsker å skape den gode stemningen, folkelige tonen, og noe som ikke drives av en som heter Elon Musk.

Foreløpig er mediet bare for inviterte, men jeg har fått 20 invitasjoner til de første som benytter seg av invitasjonslenken: https://t2.social/i/0bc5d4ac33f8 (ja, lenken er trygg :))

Jeg omtalte mediet i Helt på Nett den 23. mai 2023:

Team T2

Grunnleggerne har stødig fartstid fra sosiale medier, og består av tre personer:

Gabor Cselle (@gabor), Medgrunnlegger / CEO
Før T2 var Gabor direktør i Google, hvor han hadde ansvar for inkubasjonen av nye forbrukerprodukter, og han var gruppeproduktsjef i Twitter, der han ledet initiativer innen forbrukerprodukter. Han har tidligere startet og solgt to selskaper: reMail, en mobil e-postapp som ble kjøpt opp av Google, og Namo Media, en plattform for mobile annonsering som ble kjøpt opp av Twitter. Gabor har en mastergrad i datavitenskap fra ETH Zürich.

Sarah Oh (@sarah), Medgrunnlegger
Tidligere jobbet hun som menneskerettighetsrådgiver i Twitter. Før det bidro Sarah til å etablere Facebooks første team som fokuserte på å implementere konkrete produktendringer for å forebygge vold. Sarah er utdannet ved Northwestern University og var tidligere gjesteforsker ved The Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society ved University of California.

Michael Greer (@michael), Medgrunnlegger
Michael er vår teknologidirektør (CTO). Han kommer til T2 etter nesten 6 år i Discord, der han ledet kjerneproduktteamene som senior direktør for ingeniørvirksomhet. Tidligere var han medgrunnlegger av TAPP Media og var teknologidirektør for den anerkjente nyhetskilden The Onion i 8 år.

Intervju

Jeg fikk en prat med Sarah, og ble koblet videre til T2 sitt presseteam for å få svar på noen spørsmål. Hele intervjuet kan du lese her:

- What's behind the name T2? Is it a project name, or will it stick? And, I have to ask, does it have anything to do with T for Twitter?

T2 is currently a placeholder name - more to come soon on this! Yes, T2 was what co-founder Gabor jotted down in his notebook when ideating on a new Twitter. And no, it has nothing to do with The Terminator. 

- Why did you start T2? And what's your plans for the future?

Gabor Cselle first had the idea for T2, as he wanted to return to a simpler time on Twitter, before 4,000 character Tweets, the chaos of verification and the endless bots and hate speech. The catalyst was Elon’s takeover and his close friend (and now T2 co-founder) Sarah Oh’s immediate dismissal along with the rest of Twitter’s Trust & Safety team.

The internet town square that Twitter once was ceased to exist, and the team knew that something superior could be built - with trust and safety integrated from day one. 

From the beginning, the T2 team has taken a values-based approach, creating a product that feels good to use. On top of setting up systems and technologies for monitoring and blocking offensive content, the team has developed an architecture that fosters good community health. T2’s growth strategy is a key example: rather than throwing open the doors, T2 has slowly built its user base through steady admissions from its waitlist, paired with verification opportunities and Community Invites. 

The result will be an engaging, intelligently moderated public square - what the overwhelming majority of Twitter users have always sought but never really had until now. 

- Why should people join the platform?

T2 aims to be the place where people globally can connect and be better to each other. A place that rewards people for the value they bring, not just crude engagement metrics. We’re looking to build a true town square, a real community and a place that feels really good to use. 

- Will there be marketing possibilities on T2 in the future? How will the project make long term revenue?

Absolutely! First we’re looking to make sure all of the processes and systems are in place to make T2 a safe, authentic space. Then we’ll continue to open the doors to additional users and grow the space. Advertisers and marketers want to be sure their ads are aligned with brand safe content. Twitter continues to lose ad revenue because the site has become an inhospitable space for brands. 

With all the focus on stoking engagement, Twitter (and other social platforms) have forgotten that abuse and arguments do not put consumers in an open-minded, curious, mindset: which is what brands need for conversions and purchases. T2 aims to build a better, safer overall experience and produce better returns for marketers as a result. 

- What's the vibe on T2, compared to other platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and others?

The vibe so far has been very positive and uplifting. Many T2 users have been trying other platforms as well, but keep coming back and talking about how the T2 experience is just better. The site performs better and loads more quickly. The attitude and comradery are noticeably better, even though the majority of users didn’t know each other before T2. We credit this to the norms that have been put in place from Day 1. 

Even when there have been disagreements (and there have been) we’ve seen the users immediately self-correct and deescalate the situation. That’s what we’re going for. T2 is implementing a lot of moderation tools and processes, but a community stays healthiest when its own members regulate the tone and civility of the platform without prompting. When was the last time you saw that happen on Twitter?

Hvis du ønsker å høre intervjuet oversatt til norsk, kan du gjøre det her: