Tumblr will add support for ActivityPub, an open, decentralised social networking protocol that currently powers social networking software such as Twitter rival Mastodon, Instagram-like Pixelfed, video streaming service PeerTube, and others.
The announcement came in response to a Twitter user’s criticism of Mastodon’s complexities. Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg suggested the user “come to Tumblr” because the site would soon “add activitypub for interconnect.” In short, this announcement means that Tumblr will transition from a niche blogging platform to a larger, decentralised social network of sorts — one whose user base has grown in recent days as people leave Elon Musk’s Twitter in search of new communities.