Meta Shifts Threads Leadership: AI Executive Connor Hayes to Take the Helm

Threads to soon be overseen by Meta's AI lead - 9to5Mac

After two years under Instagram head Adam Mosseri, Meta is officially handing off Threads to a new leader. Here's what the change could mean for the app's future. As first reported by Axios, Meta is naming longtime executive Connor Hayes, formerly head of generative AI product, as the new head of Threads starting in September. The move marks the first time someone outside Instagram will take the reins of the text-based social app, in yet another sign that Meta seems to be finally getting serious about treating Threads as more than just an Instagram sidekick. Until now, Threads had been overseen by Instagram chief Adam Mosseri, who helped launch the app back in 2023. But in a staff memo sent Thursday, Mosseri said it's time for dedicated leadership: "Given Threads' maturity, we think we need a dedicated app lead who can focus all of their time on helping Threads move forward." One would agree. Hayes has been with Meta since 2011, and he's held product roles across Instagram and Facebook. He was also part of the original team that build the first version or Threads. His new position begins in mid-September, and once onboarded, he'll manage all product, design, engineering, and research teams working on Threads. He'll still report to Mosseri, but the day-to-day responsibilities are shifting. Today's move comes at an interesting time for Threads. Just a few days ago, Similarweb reported that despite being behind X in global web traffic, Threads has been bridging the gap on mobile, averaging around 115 million mobile daily active users, compared to X's 132 million. Putting a gen AI exec in charge of Threads could hint at where Meta wants to take the app next, especially as it continues testing AI-generated content in users' feeds. It is possible that, with Threads still being relatively small compared to other Meta apps, the company might be thinking about using it as a testbed for AI features, before rolling them out more broadly to its other apps. Do you use Threads? Do you always ask if anybody still uses Threads? Let us know in the comments.

Meta's Adam Mosseri to Hand Over Threads' Duties to Gen AI Exec: Report

Adam Mosseri is currently the Head of Instagram at Meta Connor Hayes has held multiple executive positions at Meta This comes as Threads' traffic grows steadily Recently, the news of Threads' daily active users (DAUs) number inching closer to its rival, X's(formerly Twitter) number, made headlines. The app reportedly saw 115.1 million DAUs on Android and iOS combined. Meanwhile, X witnessed a 15.2 percent year-on-year (YoY) decline in its DAUs growth, bringing the number to 132 million. As Threads gains popularity, Instagram's Adam Mosseri has reportedly announced in an internal memo that he will be handing over his day-to-day responsibilities of Threads to Connor Hayes, a Meta executive. According to a report by Axios, citing an internal company memo, Meta has named Hayes the Head of Threads, taking over responsibilities of the app's day-to-day operations from Mosseri, who has been serving as the Head of Instagram since October 2018. While announcing the move, Mosseri reportedly wrote in a staff memo that taking Threads' maturity into account, the company believes that a "dedicated app lead" is needed, someone who can focus solely on the social media platform, "helping" it move ahead. Hayes will reportedly assume the Head of Threads position by mid-September. He will answer directly to Mosseri, while all other product managers, engineers, designers, data scientists, and user experience researchers at Threads are said to report to Hayes. The report added that Threads' data engineers, however, will continue to report through Brad Ruderman, Senior Director of Data Engineering at Meta. Meta launched Threads in July 2023 to rival Elon Musk's X. Now, after over two years of its launch, Threads is getting a new head who has previously held several executive positions at Meta, primarily managing its various products. This indicates that the US-based tech giant is starting to give more importance to its micro blogging platform. However, what is interesting here is that, until now, Hayes was serving as the Vice President (VP), Product of Generative AI at Meta. The executive held this position for over 2 years. Bringing a former AI product executive to lead Threads signals that more generative AI features could make their way to the social media platform. The move also comes as Threads, Meta's microblogging platform, has reportedly started gaining traction. According to a recent report by TechCrunch, citing data from Similarweb, Instagram's Threads witnessing a steady growth in its DAUs number. The social media platform's iOS and Android mobile apps, together, saw 115.1 million DAUs, up 127.8 percent YoY. Meanwhile, its primary competitor, X witnessed a fall of 15.2 percent in its YoY growth, reaching 132 million DAUs. While X is still far ahead, Threads seems to be bridging the gap between the two fast, considering it is only a two year old platform.