Bluesky just made building custom social feeds as easy as chatting with an AI. The decentralized social network launched Attie, a new app that lets users create personalized feeds using natural language instead of code. The move signals Bluesky's push to make its signature feature - algorithmic choice - accessible to its growing user base without requiring technical expertise.
Bluesky is betting that AI can solve one of social media's biggest problems: giving users control over what they see without making them learn to code. The company's new Attie app, announced via TechCrunch, uses artificial intelligence to translate plain English requests into custom algorithmic feeds on the platform's open atproto network.
The timing couldn't be more strategic. While Meta and X continue pushing users toward opaque, engagement-maximizing algorithms, Bluesky's been building its identity around transparency and choice. Custom feeds have been technically possible on the platform since launch, but they required coding knowledge that put them out of reach for most users. Attie changes that calculus entirely.
Here's how it works in practice: instead of writing complex filtering rules or boolean logic, users can simply tell Attie what they want. "Show me tech news but skip crypto drama" or "give me art posts from people I follow plus similar creators" become functional feeds in seconds. The AI interprets the intent, constructs the appropriate filters using atproto's underlying architecture, and deploys a working feed that users can tweak further or share with others.
The technical foundation matters here. Bluesky's atproto protocol was designed from the ground up to support portable, user-created algorithms. Unlike traditional social platforms where the algorithm is a black box controlled by the company, atproto treats feeds as shareable, remix-able objects. Attie essentially becomes a user-friendly interface layer on top of that technical capability, translating between human intent and protocol specifications.
This represents a fundamentally different approach than what we're seeing elsewhere in social media. Meta recently doubled down on AI-curated feeds across Instagram and Facebook, but users get no say in how those algorithms work. X's "For You" feed remains similarly opaque under Elon Musk's ownership. Even newer entrants like Threads have stuck with company-controlled recommendation systems.
Bluesky's growth trajectory adds context to why Attie matters now. The platform crossed 20 million users earlier this year, driven partly by waves of users frustrated with changes at X and seeking alternatives. But user growth only sticks if the platform offers genuinely differentiated features. Custom feeds have been that differentiator in theory, but they've been underutilized because of the technical barrier. Attie could finally unlock that potential at scale.
The AI integration also positions Bluesky to compete on the terms that matter in 2026. Every major tech platform is racing to embed AI features, but most are using it to optimize engagement for advertisers. Bluesky's framing is different: AI as a tool for user agency rather than user manipulation. Whether that resonates with mainstream users beyond the tech-savvy early adopters remains the big question.
There are obvious challenges ahead. AI-generated feeds could surface unexpected content or miss nuance in user requests. Moderation becomes trickier when feeds are user-created rather than platform-wide. And Bluesky will need to educate users that this capability even exists, competing for attention against platforms with vastly larger marketing budgets.
But the strategic logic is sound. As the social media landscape continues fragmenting, platforms need clear value propositions. Bluesky's bet is that giving users genuine control - not just the illusion of it - will prove more durable than the engagement-optimized feeds dominating the competition. Attie is how they scale that promise beyond the developer community that built the platform initially.
Attie represents Bluesky's clearest articulation yet of what differentiated social media could look like in an AI-saturated landscape. Rather than using artificial intelligence to optimize for engagement metrics, the app positions AI as a tool for user empowerment. Whether that philosophical difference translates into sustained user growth depends on execution and education. But in a market where every platform increasingly looks and feels the same, Bluesky's making a credible case that algorithmic transparency and user control aren't just nice-to-haves - they might be the future of social media that doesn't burn everyone out. The real test comes in the next few months as mainstream users either embrace or ignore the power to build their own feeds.
