X's long-anticipated WhatsApp and Telegram rival, XChat, made its standalone app debut Friday afternoon, landing on the iOS App Store after nearly a year since it was rebranded under its new name. The launch marks the full rollout of Elon Musk's overhauled DM platform, which emphasizes user privacy.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Pre-orders opened last week, with X touting XChat's fully encrypted messaging as its flagship feature. Beyond end-to-end encryption, the app promises zero user tracking, no ads, and an array of in-message privacy tools — including the ability to hide photos from recipients after sending.
There's a casualty, however. X's Communities feature is being axed to make way for XChat, a move that may sting for its niche but loyal user base. Communities functioned as X's answer to Reddit's subreddit forums, letting users follow curated feeds around specific interests — not unlike Bluesky's Feeds. But according to X's Head of Product Nikita Bier, the feature saw minimal traction: only 0.4% of users ever engaged with it, and those who did were largely "user-acquisition channels for Kick or compensated clipper communities."
You May Also Like
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
In its place, XChat will offer large-scale group chats — currently capped at 350 users, with plans to expand that ceiling to 1,000. Communities officially goes dark on May 30.
Chance Townsend is the General Assignments Editor at Mashable, covering tech, video games, dating apps, digital culture, and whatever else comes his way. He has a Master's in Journalism from the University of North Texas and is a proud orange cat father. His writing has also appeared in PC Mag and Mother Jones.
In his free time, he cooks, loves to sleep, and greatly enjoys Detroit sports. If you have any tips or want to talk shop about the Lions, you can reach out to him on Bluesky @offbrandchance.bsky.social or by email at [email protected].
