Meta Tests 'Thriends' Privacy Feature for Threads

Meta is currently testing a new feature called "Threads Friends" designed to let users share posts with smaller, private groups of followers, according to Engadget. The company is piloting the tool in Japan, Italy, and Ireland.

Users can curate a list of up to 50 friends—referred to by the app as "Thriends"—to view specific posts that remain hidden from the general platform. To assist with setup, a Meta spokesperson told Engadget that the app will automatically suggest followers based on frequent engagement, though users can customize the list. Once active, a green bubble at the top of the feed allows users to view posts shared by their friends within the previous 24 hours.

Engadget notes that the functionality closely resembles "Circles," a feature Twitter launched in 2022 that allowed groups of up to 150 people before being discontinued roughly a year later.

Laura Javier, the product design director for Threads, provided a preview of the friends-only posts and an "Easter egg" that shortens the feature's name to "Thriends." Meta has not specified if or when the test will expand beyond the three initial countries, meaning the feature remains unavailable to most users in the U.S.