Mark Zuckerberg might be the emperor of social media, but even emperors aren’t immune to well-placed jabs. Enter Jay Graber, the CEO of Bluesky, who recently took the stage at SXSW and delivered a punchline so sharp it could slice through Meta’s metaverse ambitions. At a panel discussion, while discussing the power dynamics of social media, Graber quipped, “We don’t want a Caesar.” Now, that might sound like a harmless history lesson to the untrained ear, but make no mistake—this was a direct missile aimed at none other than Mark Zuckerberg.
The Zuckerberg Empire
For decades, Zuckerberg has been the reigning Augustus of the cultural media world. From Twitter to Instagram to WhatsApp, he controls systems that form online conversation, impact elections, and keep us scrolling aimlessly at 2 AM. And despite several rebrandings—most somewhat Meta—his dynasty remains as centralized as the Roman Senate under Julius Caesar.
Facebook’s story is littered with complaints of dominant habits, privacy breaches, and computational adjustment. The only real challenge Zuckerberg has faced in the last decade came from Elon Musk‘s Twitter ( now X ), which, let’s be honest, is like replacing a questionable Caesar with an even more erratic one.
Enter Jay Graber, the Anti-Caesar
While technology entrepreneurs spend their time building AI soldiers and sky provinces, Jay Graber has been quietly working on something truly revolution: a social media platform that isn’t controlled by any one person. As the CEO of Bluesky, Graber is leading a movement toward decentralization—where no single entity has absolute power over the digital town square.
And that’s where the Caesar comment comes in. It wasn’t just a cheeky remark, it was a statement of intent. Bluesky’s model is designed to be everything Meta isn’t —open, federated, and resistant to the whims of a single ruler. In other words, no Zuck, no Musk, no tech overlord deciding what you see, share, or believe.
No Gods, No Masters, No Algorithms?
Graber’s dig at Zuckerberg comes at a time when social media users are increasingly frustrated with algorithmic overlords. Facebook’s algorithm decides what gets traction, prioritizing engagement ( read: outrage ) over everything else. The result? A digital Colosseum where misinformation, political polarization, and cat videos battle for supremacy.
Bluesky, on the other hand, is experimenting with a user-driven approach. Instead of a single, mysterious algorithm controlling what appears on your feed, Bluesky is building a system where users can choose their own moderation tools. Think of it as the difference between an emperor dictating laws and a democratic council debating them.
Can Bluesky Dethrone the Emperor?
The question remains: can Bluesky succeed where others have failed? Many have tried to build “alternative” social networks, only to fade into obscurity ( pour one out for Google+ ). But Bluesky has an edge—it’s not just a reaction to Big Tech but a complete reimagining of how social media should work.
Graber’s vision is clear: no more Caesars, no more tech oligarchs, no more platforms treating users as products. Whether Bluesky will rise to rival Meta remains to be seen, but one thing is certain—Mark Zuckerberg has been put on notice.
And as history tells us, even the mightiest emperors eventually fall.
