Over the weekend, the app produced by former President Donald Trump's new media firm, Truth Social, became available for download in Apple's App Store, ahead of its expected launch on Monday.
"America's 'Big Tent' social media platform that supports an open, free, and honest worldwide dialogue without discriminating against political philosophy," according to the app's description. It was launched over the weekend on the App Store and was updated late Sunday with "bug fixes." (According to the Truth Social website, it will be available in the Google Play Store soon.)
Following the Jan. 6 insurgency, which Trump regularly supported, Twitter banned Trump from the social media network last year, citing the "potential of future encouragement of violence."
By Monday, a number of user accounts had surfaced, all of which cited delays or issues in setting up the account. Early Monday, a Washington Post reporter was able to download the app and establish an account by providing an email address, but no verification email was sent.
According to an executive's posts on a test version of the platform, the app was due to be published in full on Monday, Presidents' Day, according to Reuters.
Trump is preparing to return to social media after a year away.
The Washington Post reported in January that the app's full functionality might take months after its introduction. People familiar with the situation told The Washington Post at the time that Trump was dissatisfied with the network's growth speed.
"We live in a world where the Taliban has a large presence on Twitter, yet your favorite American President has been muted," Trump said while announcing the network's creation in October. "This is intolerable," he added.
Following a pro-Trump mob's insurgency at the US Capitol last year, Facebook and Twitter kicked Trump off their sites. He and other conservative lawmakers have long accused social media platforms of attempting to suppress them.
Following the announcement of Trump's new network in October, a version of the site was temporarily made public, enabling users to register profiles and claim identities. A photo of a pig defecating was shared by an account with the name "donaldjtrump."
A spokesperson for Trump Media and Technology Group, which owns Truth Social, did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the app's official launch date.
On Monday morning, Truth Social was ranked first in the App Store's download charts, ahead of HBO Max and TikTok.
Truth Social users are welcomed with a sign-up email that defines the platform's users as "Truth Sayers."" "Post a Truth, Re-Truth, photo, news piece, or video link to share your unique perspective... Don't be surprised if your Truth becomes viral! "a greeting message reads
The firm's most recent press release is a statement from Trump regarding the "Freedom Convoy" rallies against pandemic restrictions in Canada and abroad, written in the manner of his earlier tweets. "TruthSocial is announcing today that we are welcome the Freedom Convoy with open arms to speak freely on TruthSocial when we debut – coming very soon!" he said in the Feb. 4 statement.
The Truth Social beta site appears to have a platform similar to Twitter's, with "Truths" and "Likes" instead of tweets and likes.
Trump started a blog named "From the Desk of Donald Trump" after losing his internet platform in the spring. The site, however, had a minimal audience, according to The Washington Post and others.
The blog was shut down after 29 days, reportedly due to Trump's displeasure with media coverage of its limited following.