Twitter tests a way to share with small groups that's giving us serious Google+ flashbacks

For the youngin's, it’s like Instagram Close Friends

Twitter is a great destination for talking about basically whatever — catching up with the latest trends and opinions on almost any subject. But the past few weeks have seen the platform itself quickly become the center of many discussions, whether about Elon Musk’s takeover or an edit option that might finally be actually happening. Even in the face of all this unheval, developers continue to try out new feaatures, and today we're hearing about Twitter Circle, a new sharing mode that's reminding us of Instagram’s Close Friends and Google+ shared circles.

Users will be able to choose up to 150 people (including followers and non-followers alike) to join their Circle. They can then share specific tweets to this select group whenever they feel like it, without outsiders being able to view. The experience is currently in limited testing, but when it arrives, you’ll be able to use it by tapping the compose button and pulling up the Choose Audience menu, where you can then select your Circle instead of Everyone.

Members of your Circle won't be able to share your posts themselves using Twitter's built-in retweet fuctionality. That said, nothing stops them from taking screenshots, copying text, and just manually sharing your Tweet widely. Of course, you'll have full control over who's in your Circle, so you can always add or remove anyone later. In case you're worried about any bad blood there, Twitter says it won’t notify anyone you’ve kicked out of your Circle.

If you're among the chosen few for this test, you'll only be able to create one Circle (we’ll have to wait and see if this changes after the feature rolls out widely). Only the Circle's owner will have access to the list of who's included (kind of like Telegram Channels). On the flip side of that, if you're added to a Circle, you won't be able directly remove yourself, but there will be the option to mute a discussion if you don’t like it.