The company is currently testing the project with celebrities and influencers, according to people familiar with the matter. It has been secretly available to select creators for months, according to one of the people. 

The app, which will be separate from Instagram but will allow people to connect accounts, may debut as soon as June, according to Lia Haberman, who teaches social and influencer marketing at UCLA and published a screenshot of an early app description. It may eventually be compatible with other Twitter competitor apps, including Mastodon, according to Habermans screenshot.

Instagram, owned by Meta Platforms Inc., didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. Twitters chaotic takeover by Elon Musk has caused some users to look for alternatives, and created an opening in the market.

Historically, we know Meta likes to sample and recreate features from other apps and third-party tools based on what they anticipate being popular with their users, Haberman said. She noted that Musk has talked about turning Twitter into an everything app, with a lot of features besides informational posts. Based on Metas track record borrowing from other platforms, its much more likely theyll get there first by consolidating all these experiences theyre building.

Platformer in March reported that Meta was exploring a text-based app.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that city officials are opening their latest investigation into the company that Musk took over late last year.

Thats after the ex-employees, including a former vice president of real estate, alleged in a lawsuit filed in a federal court in Delaware that Twitter didnt pay them promised severance. Twitter is seeking to dismiss the case.

They also allege that Musks team ordered numerous changes to the companys headquarters in a 1930s Art Deco building in downtown San Francisco that violated building codes. Those changes included disabling lights and adding locks that wouldnt open during an emergency, according to the lawsuit.

One of the plaintiffs is Tracy Hawkins, Twitters former vice president of real estate and workplace, who was responsible for managing the companys physical offices and leases. The lawsuit says Hawkins wasnt initially opposed to Musks takeover but was forced to resign when Elon Musk and his transition team insisted that she violate her professional ethics by causing Twitter to intentionally breach its leases and other contracts. The lawsuit claims Musk refused to pay rent on the building.

This is not the first time San Francisco officials have tussled with Musk, who bought Twitter for $44 billion in October and gutted much of its workforce as he converted a part of the companys headquarters into bedrooms.

Earlier this year, San Francisco building inspectors gave Twitters construction contractor two weeks to submit a corrected building use permit if the company wanted to keep using two conference rooms as bedrooms.

The city launched an investigation in December after Forbes reported on the beds, prompting owner Musk to lash out at San Francisco Mayor London Breed, even though there is no evidence she was involved in the inspection.

Deloitte, one of the Big 4 consulting firms and an authority on workplace research, conducted a massive global survey of Gen Z and millennials last November and December, and found that half of them reported that they live from paycheck to paycheck. Finding the bills increasingly difficult to pay with just one source of income, 46% of Gen Zers and 37% of millennials have added another part or full-time gig in addition to their primary job. These young generations arent just working hard for the money, theyre going overtime to make ends meet and address the financial concerns. Thats a far cry from quiet quitting. 

Listing the high cost of living as their primary concern for the second year in a row, Gen Z and millennials also cite unemployment and climate change as other major concerns. The cost of living has been their top concern for two consecutive years now, and finances are consistently their top stress driver, Deloittes global people & purpose leader Michele Parmelee tells Fortune. Interestingly, these concerns are really consistent across both generations, so its not just a matter of Gen Zs being young and just getting started in their careers. 

Popular side gigs include selling products or services online, working for a food delivery or transportation service app, pursuing artistic ambitions, and becoming a social media influencer. Parmelee also said that many of the cultural signifiers of the younger generations seem to be rooted in economics and just trying to save money in a less affordable world. These generations are also making lifestyle choices that help save money and protect the environment such as buying second-hand clothes and avoiding fast fashion, choosing not to drive a car, and eating a vegetarian or vegan diet, she explains.

The youngest employees arent the only ones feeling their wallet get a little cramped. About 64.4% of all U.S. adults said they had no money left over when the end of the month came around this past December, according to PYMNTS report. There was a stroke of optimism though, as 40% of those surviving paycheck to paycheck believed their salary would increase to combat the high cost of living. Younger generations are also cautiously positive about the future, as Deloitte found that 44% of Gen Z and 35% of millennials expect their personal finances to improve within the next year.

To be sure, some Americans are living paycheck to paycheck with a large rainy day fund under their belt. People with an emergency savings account have an average balance of  $16,800, per the 2023 New York Life Wealth Watch Survey. Gen Z had on average a bit under $10,00 stashed away, and millennials had $14,000. During the pandemic, many were able to build wealth and sizable savings, unsurprisingly when the restrictions ended and life resumed (with a high cost of living to boot), many dipped into their savings. It didnt feel good though, as many reported greater financial anxiety despite having greater amounts of wealth than before the pandemic started. And even with some money saved, these younger generations have less of a substantial savings account than their older counterparts, exacerbating the need to find another job. 

Perhaps due to a fear of unemployment and financial stressors even with two jobs, respondents that are worried about economic precarity report feeling nervous about asking for a promotion or finding a new job. Low salary remains the top reason that younger employees leave their jobs, although Deloitte finds that workers that have been in their job for less than 2 years are more likely to report living paycheck to paycheck than those who have been in their position for 5 years. Money or a concern of a lack thereof is holding younger generations back from their aspirations, Because of their concerns about the economy, over half or more worry it will become harder or impossible to ask for a raise, get a new job, receive a promotion, and even start a family or buy a house. Its clear these financial concerns are impacting both their career and personal lives, adds Parmelee.

In signaling so, Powell provided some clarity about the Feds likely next policy move after a cacophony of speeches this week by central bank officials had clouded the picture.

Having come this far, we can afford to look at the data and the evolving outlook and make careful assessments, Powell said, referring to the Feds 10 straight rate hikes, which have elevated its key short-term rate from near zero a year ago to about 5.1%, its highest level in 16 years.

Speaking at a Fed conference in Washington, Powell said the central banks benchmark rate, which affects many consumer and business loans, is now high enough to restrain borrowing, spending and economic growth. Fed officials hope that slower growth will cool inflation over time.

The Fed chair also suggested that the risks of doing too much versus doing too little are becoming more balanced. That marks a shift from earlier this year, when Powell often said the risk of raising rates too little to combat inflation outweighed the risk of raising them so high as to cause a deep recession.

Powells remarks Friday followed a series of comments from Fed officials this week that conveyed decidedly mixed messages about the central banks likely next move.

Most of the policymakers signaled support for a pause at its next meeting. But several others expressed their belief that the Fed would have to further raise rates to curb persistent inflation. Lorie Logan, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, said Thursday that inflation remained too high and that the latest economic data didnt yet justify a pause in hikes.

Inflation, under the Feds preferred measure, has declined but remains far above the central banks 2% annual target. Inflation was 4.2% in March, compared with a year earlier. Still, inflation has slowed from 7% last June to 4.2% as of March, according to the Feds preferred price gauge.