Son. Mastodon. Blue sky. Substack notes. Job. Nostr. Pouring spout. There is no shortage of X competitors in the months following Elon Musk’s takeover of the old text-based social network Twitter. Now you can add one more startup to that lineup: Lyrak, a new rival to X that aims to differentiate itself by focusing on real-time news and monetization options for creators, like on X, but with diverse integrations , similar to Instagram Threads.
Fediverse refers to the open source social network of interconnected servers powered by the ActivityPub social networking protocol. Mastodon is the best known among federated social apps, but even Meta sensed a shift in the direction of the web and built its latest social network, Threads, with an eye on ActivityPub integrations.
With Lyrak, the plan is to take the best of what Twitter has to offer and combine it with ActiviyPub integration, allowing users to interact with a wider audience on other federated social networks, like Mastodon and others.
This integration is not yet operational, but the team says it will begin work in a few months. Once online, Lyrak users will be able to see posts from Mastodon users and vice versa.
Founded by London-based web designer and marketer Rishi Siva, Lyrak takes its name from a main character in the TV show “His Dark Materials”, Lyra. Siva says that Lyra is discovering new worlds and since Lyrak is also striving to build something better, this seems like a good source of inspiration.
The founder came up with this idea after spending time helping small businesses build websites so they could make money on the web and attract customers. At one point, Siva also created a Thumbtack-like app, but the COVID-19 pandemic impacted its ability to expand, as many local artisans were unable to work at the time .
He nevertheless expresses the desire to help users better monetize their content and their online skills.
“Our reduced fees and 50% ad revenue sharing with creators further support this goal,” notes Siva.
In comparison, X doesn’t publicly share its percentage, which can vary based on job type, demographics, geography, and other factors. Additionally, revenue is only generated for ads shown to verified users (paid subscribers).
Siva is also unhappy with the direction X is taking and how it affects creators.
“After Musk took over Twitter, I saw a significant change in the platform’s behavior and the types of accounts it promoted. It’s disappointing to see that all the tech leaders I admire have ignored this and are still using Twitter (X),” he noted, highlighting issues with far-right groups and anti-Semitic content on the X platform.
However, he admits that Twitter/X still remains the best place to get real-time information, which is why he remains loyal to users, despite the changes. Threads, meanwhile, doesn’t prioritize real-time information outside of sports; Siva calls it “basically a text version of Instagram.”
He believes that Mastodon and Bluesky will ultimately be too complicated for regular users, but Lyrak could benefit from their networks thanks to the fediverse integrations. (Technically, Bluesky is not federated with Mastodon because it uses a different protocol, but work is underway to build bridges between the two.)
Lyrak says it will initially focus on getting journalists on board with the network, to help it become a real-time social app. To attract them, Lyrak will allow verified journalists to share content on users’ home feeds based on their interests and will offer tools to send them notifications to people who regularly click on their links. (The latter is similar to Artifact – RIP – which would alert users to new articles from journalists and writers they follow).
The startup will also try to attract people who sell digital products, with the launch of specific tools for this clientele later in May. Creators will be able to offer subscriptions to their subscribers as well as collect tips.
Another upcoming feature will involve AI tools, like a response engine and user-generated AI characters, also planned for May.
The company plans to generate revenue through ads, like
To bypass App Store fees, Lyrak’s website will allow users to deposit funds into the app, which they can use to pay creators. (Funds added via in-app purchases will, however, require paying Apple its 30% fee.)
Another idea, borrowed from sites like Reddit, is a reputation score that will reflect the value a user brings to the community through their comments, reposts, likes, and inviting others to the platform. This will be combined with AI moderation efforts and human moderators to keep the app safe, the team promises.
“After our initial launch and a few weeks of bug fixes, we plan to release new features regularly,” Siva said. “The advantage of being a startup that creates a social application is that we have a new perspective on things. We’re not stuck in old ways of thinking, which allows us to innovate and create features that actually benefit our users.
Lyrak is built by a team of five people, most of whom are based in London. (The fifth person will soon also move to London.) The startup is currently bootstrapped and available for download on iOS.
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