Automattic-owned running a blog web site and social platform Tumblr has financially backed Tapestry, the newly launched app designed to prepare feeds from throughout the open internet, together with RSS, Mastodon, Bluesky, and others.
Launched as a Kickstarter challenge in January 2024, Tapestry went on to boost over $177,000 through 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 transferring Tumblr’s again finish to WordPress to streamline operations. Because of this transfer, Tumblr will get plugged into the fediverse, the open social internet powered by ActivityPub, the protocol that powers Mastodon, Threads, Pixelfed, and plenty of different apps.
Designed by The Iconfactory, greatest identified for its work on Twitterific, one of many authentic third-party Twitter apps, Tapestry permits customers to prepare 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 offer customers extra management over how they obtain information and knowledge.
With the rise of the open social internet particularly, folks can now higher management their on-line expertise. As an alternative 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 companies.
Because of Tumblr’s backing, Iconfactory says it additionally launched a sponsorship program in Tapestry, which permits advertisers to market their services to the app’s consumer base. As an alternative of utilizing conventional web advertisements to help the app, the sponsorship function is constructed with small, unbiased creators in thoughts, Iconfactory notes.
“Our hope is that the neighborhood round Tapestry will wish to find out about thrilling indie apps, blogs which can be fueled by enthusiasm, and podcasts or YouTube channels that inform and entertain,” an Iconfactory blog post explains.
Tapestry is certainly one of a handful of apps that’s now making an attempt to supply that very same stage of customization by constructing an aggregator targeted on the broader internet that’s constructed on open protocols, as an alternative of only a single social community, like Bluesky.
Others competing on this area embody Surf, Feeeed, and Reeder.
Tumblr and the crew at Iconfactory had been requested for touch upon the monetary grant. We’ll replace if extra data is offered.