Automattic-owned running a blog website and social platform Tumblr has financially backed Tapestry, the newly launched app designed to arrange feeds from throughout the open net, together with RSS, Mastodon, Bluesky, and others.
Launched as a Kickstarter challenge in January 2024, Tapestry went on to boost over $177,000 by way of crowdfunding for its app, which opened as much as the general public earlier this month with its App Retailer debut.
On Tuesday, the corporate behind the app shared that Tumblr had additionally backed its challenge with a grant. These funds shall be used to construct a local macOS model of its app. (Within the meantime, the app’s iPad model can run on Macs.)
Tumblr’s curiosity on this area follows its 2019 acquisition by WordPress.com dad or mum Automattic, which is shifting Tumblr’s again finish to WordPress to streamline operations. Because of this transfer, Tumblr will get plugged into the fediverse, the open social net powered by ActivityPub, the protocol that powers Mastodon, Threads, Pixelfed, and plenty of different apps.
Designed by The Iconfactory, finest identified for its work on Twitterific, one of many unique third-party Twitter apps, Tapestry permits customers to arrange quite a lot of sources — like weblog posts, information articles, and social media updates — into feeds of their very own creation.
The app helps sources like RSS (information feeds), YouTube, podcasts, Bluesky, Mastodon, Reddit, Tumblr, Micro.weblog, GO Comics, and others.
The broader concept behind Tapestry is to present customers extra management over how they obtain information and knowledge.
With the rise of the open social net specifically, folks can now higher management their on-line expertise. As a substitute of being beholden to a tech large’s algorithms, customers on apps like Bluesky are constructing their very own feeds, subscribing to specialised feeds constructed by others, and configuring their very own moderation providers.
Because of Tumblr’s backing, Iconfactory says it additionally launched a sponsorship program in Tapestry, which permits advertisers to market their services and products to the app’s consumer base. As a substitute of utilizing conventional web advertisements to assist the app, the sponsorship function is constructed with small, impartial creators in thoughts, Iconfactory notes.
“Our hope is that the neighborhood round Tapestry will wish to learn about thrilling indie apps, blogs which might be fueled by enthusiasm, and podcasts or YouTube channels that inform and entertain,” an Iconfactory weblog submit explains.
Tapestry is one among a handful of apps that’s now trying to supply that very same stage of customization by constructing an aggregator targeted on the broader net that’s constructed on open protocols, as an alternative of only a single social community, like Bluesky.
Others competing on this area embrace Surf, Feeeed, and Reeder.
Tumblr and the crew at Iconfactory had been requested for touch upon the monetary grant. We’ll replace if extra info is offered.
