The post-Twitter world is divided among a handful of potential alternative social networks, which is exciting but also annoying. Things became a bit more integrated last week. That’s after Meta’s Twitter alternative, Threads, made it possible for users of Mastodon and other services to follow Threads accounts that opt into the Fediverse.

Many Threads users were confused by this announcement, mainly because they don't know what Fediverse is. To explain it drastically: Fediverse is a network of social media sites built on the same protocol: ActivityPub.

You know how, as a Gmail user, you can send an email to someone using Outlook, Yahoo Mail, or a private server? That’s because email is built on a protocol that no one owns. The Fediverse works in a similar way: you can share messages from one network, and users on other Fediverse networks can see them. So far, some of the most popular services that are part of this network include Mastodon, image-sharing site Pixelfed, and Reddit alternative Lemmy. Tumblr is also working on an integration, which means that Threads, Mastodon, and Tumblr could all eventually be part of the same ecosystem sometime this year.

Meta is slowly rolling out Threads' Fediverse connection. The new feature is in beta and only available in the US, Canada, and Japan. Users will have to opt in before their posts are shared to these other social networks, and the feature isn't yet complete: Threads users won't be able to see likes and comments from users outside of Threads, can't follow users on other services, and can't post polls or Threads with restricted comments. It's just a start, but it's something.