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There’s a new face on the social media block, and a new logo to recognise. This has people asking “What is the Threads logo?” so let’s check out what it is, and what it means.
What is the Threads logo?
The logo for Meta’s rival text-based platform is a stylised version of the “@” symbol. This keyboard character is synonymous with social media apps, and the user handles thereof.
The deep integration of the “@” symbol in the functionality of the app is a clever association. This is the kind of thinking you see in many of the best logos of all time. For example, Instagram logo itself alludes to it’s own functionality. It depicts a camera, a skeuomorph of the activity you’d associate with Instagram, namely taking and sharing photos. This camera, then simplified to the point of minimalism, remains legible in small display sizes and as a silhouette – one of the most essential design elements of any great logo.
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Is there a hidden meaning behind the Threads app logo?
On Thursday, July 7th 2023, Twitter users were presented with a fresh alternative to the “Blue bird site“. Dubbed unaffectionately by some as “meta’s new Twitter clone“, Threads came to steal Twitter’s crown as #1 text-based social media app. Following months of rumours that Elon Musk would soon have competition to his $44 Billion investment, Mark Zuckerberg took advantage of the chaos at Twitter HQ to launch Threads, an Instagram app.
24 hours and 14 million new users after launch, the internet has found (or invented) some alternative interpretations of the Twitter rival’s logo:
Other Meta Threads logo interpretations
The letter “Ku” of the Tamil alphabet
Many users have compared the threads app icon to the letter “Ku” of the Tamil alphabet (a South Asian language mostly spoken in India.) The Tamil letter ‘கு is not the character it was intentionally referencing. However, we see at first glance why the comparison was made. The Tamil character directly translates to the English preposition “to”.
The app’s logo is also similar to Malayalam letters ത്ര “Thr / Thra” and ക്ര “Kra”. At least, after a 90-degree clockwise rotation. Depending on the typeface they’re written in, these become the strongest visual comparison so far. This serves as a great example of the human brain finding patterns in everything, even inferring meaning where it was not implied.
Homer Simpsons’ ear
As part of an ongoing joke (or conspiracy theory?) that The Simpsons consistently predicts world news years in advance, some have found a striking resemblance between the new logo and Homer Simpsons’ ear.
The image in question, sadly, has been edited for the sake of the joke. The original image bears no resemblance to the logo of Threads.