Toni Schneider, who took over as interim CEO of Bluesky in March after longtime CEO Jay Graber stepped down, has now removed the "interim" label and officially become the company’s permanent CEO. Schneider, previously the founding CEO of Automattic—known for WordPress and Tumblr—and a partner at True Ventures, expressed strong commitment to Bluesky’s mission. In his announcement, he highlighted plans to focus on developing smaller, more private communities within the platform, aiming to spark the next phase of growth and innovation.

Bluesky was originally spun out from Twitter and has positioned itself as an alternative social network, especially gaining attention from users disenchanted with changes introduced by Elon Musk after his 2022 acquisition of Twitter, which was later rebranded as X and integrated under Musk’s SpaceXAI umbrella. Under Graber’s leadership, Bluesky reached approximately 43 million users and expanded the AT Protocol, a decentralized social protocol designed to allow interoperability across social apps, although more recent months have seen challenges with user retention and engagement declines.

The platform's recent struggles to maintain its audience have led some observers to speculate about its long-term viability, especially following a surge of new users around Donald Trump’s 2024 re-election when Musk was politically active. Despite these hurdles, Schneider conveyed optimism and readiness to lead the effort to rejuvenate Bluesky, emphasizing that the platform's journey is just beginning and expressing enthusiasm about the potential impact of focused, community-driven social experiences.

Notably, Schneider benefits from Bluesky’s backing by both Automattic and True Ventures, where he is a partner, giving him strong ties to the company’s investor base. As Bluesky seeks to capitalize on its decentralized technology and carve out a unique social media niche, Schneider’s experienced leadership aims to steer the company through its current challenges toward renewed growth and innovation in the evolving social media landscape.