Twitter to roll out long-form notes feature in 'the next few weeks': Report

Twitter is set to launch a new long-form blogging feature called Twitter Notes in "the next few weeks," according to a report from TechCrunch.

Leaks and reports of such a feature have been circulating for months. In May, app researcher Jane Manchun Wong shared screenshots of a feature called Twitter Notes, or Twitter Articles, which allows users to write blog posts formatted with embedded images, links, and tweets. More screenshots of the same tool were shared in April by another app researcher, Nima Owji, showing options for users to share posts with their followers or create separate links for posts to communicate elsewhere on the web.

According to TechCrunch, the feature is currently called Notes and features prominently in beta versions of the Twitter app. But while the feature is reportedly set to launch in the coming weeks, it could be delayed for further experimentation.

Adding long-form writing to Twitter could dramatically change the nature of the platform, which has long been defined by short-form writing (tweets were just 140 characters at first, before doubling to 280 characters in 2017). On the other hand, Twitter is arguably already awash with longer written texts, shared in the form of tweet threads or tweeted screenshots of articles by others or written by users themselves (usually captured in the iOS Notes app).

By incorporating long-form writing into its platform, Twitter could potentially capture more of the value of these posts. Posting articles or notes directly to Twitter would cause the text to be indexed for marketing and search purposes. It could also dovetail with the company's developing newsletter feature. In 2021, Twitter bought newsletter firm Revue to take on rivals like Substack and has since integrated Revue newsletters into users' Twitter profiles. However, the feature does not yet seem to have caught on.