Good morning. It feels like just yesterday: Emma Chamberlain’s interviews with Billie Eilish, Hailey Bieber, and (of course) Jack Harlow at last year’s Met Gala set the Internet ablaze. With Chamberlain returning as Vogue’s special correspondent for Monday night’s gala, we can’t wait to see what moments pop this time around.

— Hannah Doyle & Nate Graber-Lipperman

Interest Ramps Up for Jack Dorsey’s Twitter Alternative

Over the last week, an increasing number of creators have been seeking out invites to Bluesky, the Twitter alternative founded by the app’s cofounder and ex-CEO Jack Dorsey. Bluesky hit Android app stores last week and iOS in February.

Background: Bluesky was originally funded by Twitter in 2019 as a non-profit initiative to develop the decentralized AT Protocol. When Dorsey left Twitter in May 2022, Bluesky went independent.

How it works:

• Similar to fellow Twitter alternative Mastodon, Bluesky lets users participate through different providers instead of a single, centralized one (as is the case on platforms like Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram).

• Bluesky likens this dynamic to email, where users can send a message to an iCloud account from a Gmail account.

• Users have access to “Following” and “What’s Hot” feeds, similar to Twitter’s Following and For You feeds.

• Bluesky plans to let users choose their own algorithms from a marketplace of algorithms created by different developers.

As of last week, more than 25,000 people are active on the app, which is currently invite-only.

What it’s like: So far, tech creators including Justin Jackson and reporters including Platformer editor Zoë Schiffer have noted comparable search capabilities to Twitter and fast load times.

Zoom out: Bluesky is one of several Twitter alternatives that have cropped up since Elon Musk took over the platform last year. But the key difference with Bluesky? People are reportedly enjoying it.

A Creator “Takeover” at the 2023 NFL Draft

After signing a massive seven-year deal with the NFL last December for the rights to broadcast its Sunday Ticket subscription package, YouTube is making its mark on the league. The company sent more than a dozen top creators to the 2023 NFL Draft in Kansas City this weekend, providing “exclusive opportunities” to create content and promote the revamped Sunday Ticket.

Details: The draft, which started Thursday night and ends Saturday, will feature creators like Dude Perfect, Ryan Trahan, and Deestroying across the weekend’s programming. The creators attending have a combined reach of 145 million subscribers on YouTube, according to Variety.

Context: The NFL has turned its draft into one of the biggest TV events in sports. Last year, 10 million viewers tuned in to watch the first round of the NFL draft. FYI, roughly 12 million viewers watched each NBA Finals game in 2022.

One more thing: As part of the weekend’s creator “takeover,” creator groups AMP and RDCWorld will face off in a game of flag football streamed live across the NFL’s social channels and the two groups’ respective YouTube channels tomorrow afternoon.

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Education Creator Raises Money for Language Learning App

Yesterday, language education creator Ikenna Obi finished a Kickstarter campaign that raised $1.2 million for his language learning game, Fluyo—making it the most funded app in Kickstarter history.

Details: Fluyo, which has been in the works for three years, uses interactive games to help users learn new languages. Obi said it cost five years of his YouTube income to fund the project prior to this fundraise.

Obi is using the Kickstarter funding to bring more languages (like Korean, German, and Japanese) to Fluyo. FYI, they plan to launch in the App Store next year.

Zoom out: The highly competitive language learning market was valued at $18.2 billion last year. Heavy hitters like Rosetta Stone and Duolingo lead the space—the latter has 49.5 million monthly active users and 13.2 million daily active users.

🔥 Press Worthy

• Wendover Productions concludes its fifth season of Jet Lag: The Game.

• Domino artist Lily Hevesh appears on How I Built This.

• Dream opens up about the threats he’s received following the announcement of his and Quackity’s new Minecraft servers.

• YouTube Music contractors vote to unionize in an historic election.

• Airrack is the latest creator featured in the Wired Web Search video series.

• One creator called Fiverr's influencer program the trifecta of "creative freedom, fair compensation, and long-term opportunity." Apply here and see for yourself.*

*This is sponsored advertising content.

📚️ Thank You For Pressing Publish

The content we’re looking forward to reading, watching, and listening to this weekend.

• "Brands that were once built on the hype of limited-edition releases are now…shifting their strategies to create community through engagement or entirely new tactics altogether." Jake Silbert expands on the paradox of declaring iconic streetwear brand Supreme “dead” for Highsnobiety.

• As President Joe Biden announced his reelection bid this week, The New York Times spoke with several young climate activists and creators about the Biden administration’s mixed results on climate action.

• Make With Miles builds a case for his record player over winter break, demonstrating engaging storytelling and camera work.

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