After a seven-year hiatus, Twitter is once again hosting an in-person developer conference. The company is bringing back Chirp, which will take place in San Francisco on November 16th. Chirp was the name of Twitter’s first-ever developer conference back in 2010, though the event was canceled in subsequent years. The last time the company hosted a live developer conference was Twitter Flight in 2015.
Since then, Twitter has had a somewhat rocky relationship with developers. The company made a series of API changes in 2018 that were deeply unpopular and poorly communicated. Makers of third-party Twitter clients were particularly affected, and they accused the company of “breaking” their apps.
More recently, Twitter has tried to (once again) improve its relationship with developers. The company launched an all-new version of its API in 2020, and has also introduced new tools to make it easier for researchers to study the platform. It’s also tested out new developer-friendly features like recommending some third-party services in its own app.
It’s not clear exactly what will be on the agenda at Chirp. The company says in a blog post that there will be a “keynote, technical sessions, [and] opportunities to meet the Twitter Developer Platform team to get your questions answered and connect with other developers in our global community.” The keynote will also be streamed live on Twitter for those not attending in person.
It’s also notable that Twitter is going ahead with the conference despite uncertainty about the company’s future as Elon Musk works to take over the company. Company executives have noted that they are very much in the dark when it comes to Musk’s plans for Twitter, and current CEO Parag Agrawal may not remain in his position for long after the deal closes (whenever that may happen). On the other hand, Twitter’s developer tools could be an important source of revenue for the company — something Musk has also made a top priority.