Donald Trump's 'Truth Social' debuts on Apple store: Here's what you should know

In a bid to challenge Facebook and Twitter, Donald Trump's new social media venture 'Truth Social' was launched on Sunday in Apple's App Store in the United States. The latest app potentially marks the former US President's return to social media after being banned from several platforms last year.

'Truth Social', available to download shortly before midnight ET, was automatically downloaded to Apple devices belonging to users who had pre-ordered the app. However, the Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) developers said the app would be 'fully operational' by late March.

Detailing its version history, Truth Social's app store page showed version 1.0 was available a day ago, a Reuters report confirmed. According to the page, the current version, 1.0.1, includes "bug fixes," according to the page.

After facing ban from several social media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, Donald Trump had in October 2021 announced that TMTG would launch a new social network. Donald Trump has described his new app 'Truth Social' as an alternative to Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, which banned him following the assault on the US Capitol by his supporters on January 6, 2021.

In a series of posts late on Friday, a verified account for the network's chief product officer, listed as Billy B., responded to  questions on the app from people invited to use it during its test phase.

According to screenshots viewed by Reuters, Billy B. stated the startup's features would resemble those of Twitter and users will not be able to edit their 'truths'. Twitter users have long sought the ability to edit posts after publication. The executive also highlights the next significant feature released on the platform will be direct messages, or DMs, between users.

The executive said that the company is also considering allowing users to sign up to receive notifications when others post content. He signalled that blocking other users would be an important component. Truth Social will issue a policy on verified accounts "in the coming weeks," the executive added.

Also read: Donald Trump’s social media firm TRUTH Social raises $1 billion