What is UpScrolled? Social media app soars up Apple Charts after TikTok's US takeover

Social media platform UpScrolled has been inundated with new users moving due to their discontent with TikTok, so much so that it has caused the app to crash.

This comes after US TikTok users have accused TikTok of censoring their videos, particularly anti-Trump videos, since the social media platform’s US operations were taken over by Larry Ellison’s Oracle, a Trump ally.

How did we get here?

A deal was made after long-term pressure from Washington for TikTok to sell due to national security concerns over its Chinese owner, ByteDance - both TikTok and ByteDance have denied these concerns.

At one point, when a deal hadn't been reached, TikTok briefly went dark in the US for 12 to 14 hours from January 18-19 last year before it was later reinstated when Trump extended the deadline for a deal to be reached.

In September, the Trump administration outlined a deal, and last week it was confirmed that TikTok agreed to a deal to sell its US operations to a consortium led by Oracle Corp.

UpScrolled soars up Apple Top Charts

Currently, UpScrolled sits at No.2 on Apple's App Store Top Charts in the US for free apps, compared to TikTok, which is No. 24 on the same charts, indicating clear movement to the new platform.

Yesterday, the official UpScrolled Instagram account shared how their servers "tapped out" due to the demand, and asked users to bear with them.

"Well, this is new... You all showed up so fast our servers tapped out. We’re not going to pretend that’s not frustrating, but honestly We’re kind of emotional about it too."

The company added, "We’re a tiny team building an alternative to the platforms that stopped listening to you. Right now, we’re scaling and running on caffeine to keep up with what YOU started. Bear with us. We’re on it. This is what it looks like when something real begins. Thank you for being part of it.

In terms of numbers, there have been 41,000 downloads between Thursday, the day the TikTok deal was finalised, and Saturday - a third of all of its installs so far, according to Appfigures and reported by Techcrunch.

In total, UpScrolled has been downloaded 140,000 times to date, 75,000 of those coming from US users.

As of Tuesday morning, UpScrolled is No.2 on Apple's App Store Top Charts in the US for free apps.Apple

What is UpScrolled?

UpScrolled is a short-form video social media platform and also includes photos, videos, sharing text posts, and the ability to send direct messages.

According to the app, it is "designed to empower users worldwide — a space to freely express thoughts, share moments, and connect with others. We built it because people are asking for more transparency, authenticity, and trust in the platforms they use every day."

The app was founded last year by Palestinian-Jordanian-Australian technologist, Issam Hijazi, who has "decades of experience at companies like IBM, Oracle, and Hitachi," according to UpScrolled’s website.

“UpScrolled is the foundation for a digital ecosystem that puts power back into the hands of the people — not the corporations,” Hijazi said in a statement on the app's website. “It’s more than just an alternative to Meta, X, or TikTok — it’s a reimagining of what social media should be: a space where creators, communities, and businesses thrive independently, with real control, transparency, and accountability.”

What has TikTok said?

Following American TikTok users saying they were experiencing glitching, their algorithm being messed up and accusing the app of censorship, TikTok's US operations have responded.

"Since yesterday, we’ve been working to restore our services following a power outage at a US data center impacting TikTok and other apps we operate," the company posted on Monday in a new X account for the US side of the business, named "TikTok USDS Joint Venture."

"We're working with our data center partner to stabilize our service. We're sorry for this disruption and hope to resolve it soon."

Elsewhere from Indy100, Trump’s latest Truth Social message shows how ‘out of touch’ he is, and The 34 most stupid things Donald Trump has ever said.

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