Why did Americans flock to the Upscrolled platform? | news

The meteoric rise of the Upscrolled platform and its topping the list of the most downloaded applications in the United States sparked a wide wave of interaction on social media platforms, amid questions about the ability of this new application to break the dominance of the giants and provide a real space for freedom of expression away from the scissors of the censor.

For many years, Tik Tok sat on the throne of the fastest growing platforms with 1.6 billion users, but the scene changed radically a few days ago. Millions of people turned to the Upscrolled platform.

What distinguishes this platform – which is similar in its interface to Instagram and TikTok – is the absence of hidden algorithms and restrictions on content, which made it occupy first place in the American “Apple” store, ahead of “WhatsApp” and “Threads”, with 1.7 million downloads recorded on Android in record time.

This heavy demand – according to the application analysis company Sensor Tower – is due to what is known as “digital migration” that followed the transfer of ownership of TikTok to American companies on January 22, an idea adopted by Donald Trump.

Fears of systematic censorship led to an explosion in the number of “Appscrolled” users by 85% in America during the last week of January 2026, which coincides with the transfer of ownership of Tik Tok to American companies.

During his participation in the Web Summit in Qatar, the founder of the Palestinian application, Issam Hijazi, confirmed that the dream has become a reality with the number of active users reaching 2.5 million, challenging major technology companies with a space that ensures that data is not exploited or votes are filtered.

Finally a space of freedom

The users of the Upscrolled application interacted to talk about their experience with the application compared to other global platforms, and the “Shabakat” program on (2/2/2026) showed some of those comments.

Activist Jabri confirmed that the platform provided him with an area of ​​freedom that he lacked on other sites, tweeting:

On the Upscrolled platform, I found my freedom. Even if it does not reach my aspirations, it is still the best. We will not leave it to those who control us. Platforms are everywhere. We must resist.

As for an account called “Rest,” he presented a critical opinion warning against the platform being closed to one color of users, saying:

The Upscrolled project could go somewhere else if it were not marketed as an “application supporting the cause” only.

Because gathering supporters on one platform allows us to talk to ourselves and convince each other of what we really believe in, while the world outside is not listening to us.

For her part, blogger Zahraa described the application as a platform for free people and rights defenders, and wrote:

The platform of all free people, which ranked first in the world in terms of its integrity. A gathering of all human rights advocates. I hope it stays that way.

While activist Maysam drew attention to the necessity of comprehensiveness of the application to ensure its global continuity, commenting:

I hope that it will not be limited to Palestine and the Palestinian issue only.. Americans have resorted to it and the application should not let them down as TikTok did.

The launch of the “Upscrolled” platform was a response to the restrictions on Palestinian content on major platforms during the genocidal war on Gaza, when Hijazi saw the need to create a digital space that allows Palestinians to express freely without hidden restrictions or strict censorship.

Developer Issam Hegazy believes that “UpScrolled” is not just an application, but rather a challenge to communicate free voices.

With the expansion of server infrastructure by 400% to cope with the pressure, the platform appears to be preparing for a new phase of global competition, placing the slogan “transparency first” as a guarantee for its users.