Threads Unveils ‘Loops’ for Better Community Discovery

Meta’s Threads platform is exploring a new feature, currently in development, known as “ Threads Loops,” designed to enhance user engagement by making it easier to discover topic-based communities within the app. This feature could streamline the process of finding relevant discussions based on specific interests.

The concept of “Loops” is well-named, suggesting a separate, focused element of a broader conversation thread. According to app researcher Alessandro Paluzzi, users will soon be able to organize individual Threads into Loops, potentially connecting these threads to topical communities. While it remains unclear if these Threads will also appear on the main timeline, the feature seems geared toward enabling users to join Loops and receive more focused updates in their feed.

This bears a resemblance to X’s Communities feature, which allows users to join topic-specific groups and highlights related posts. While Communities on X (formerly Twitter) have seen gradual growth, the public nature of the platform has made the feature a somewhat unconventional fit. However, the increased interest in limiting public engagements and creating more private, focused discussions aligns with the broader trend of shifting from public posting to private conversations.

Recent updates to the Threads app, as noted by Chris Messina, reveal that Loops will likely include various functionalities, such as the ability to join, leave, and customize user details. Despite these developments, Instagram has confirmed to TechCrunch that the feature is still not ready for live testing.

Once operational, Loops could offer a streamlined way to organize Threads interactions, allowing users to participate in more relevant and focused discussions. Given the limited use of hashtags on Threads—an outdated practice as algorithms increasingly handle content discovery—Loops could bridge the gap between algorithmic suggestions and personal preferences, ultimately enhancing user engagement and content discovery on the platform.