X Rolls Out 'Chat,' a New Encrypted Messaging and Calling Platform

The X platform is undergoing a significant transformation, evolving from its text-based roots into a comprehensive communication tool. The company has begun rolling out "Chat," an entirely new messaging system built from the ground up to replace the platform's legacy Direct Messages. This new stack introduces a suite of features focused on privacy and richer media, including end-to-end encrypted messaging, audio and video calls, and advanced file sharing.

The most significant technological shift is the introduction of end-to-end encryption (E2EE) for all messages, including group chats and media files. E2EE is a security method that scrambles data, ensuring that a conversation can only be read by the sender and the intended recipients. Alongside this new encryption, X has integrated audio and video calling directly into the platform. This feature works across iOS, Android, Mac, and PC, and notably does not require a phone number, effectively turning the platform into a global address book for its users.

The new "Chat" system also introduces capabilities common in modern messaging apps, such as the ability to edit or delete sent messages, set messages to disappear, and receive notifications (or block) screenshot attempts. The company has stated that this new communication stack, which is built on the Rust programming language, will be free of advertisements and will not track user data for profiling. This update, which unifies old DMs and new messages into a single inbox, is currently rolling out to users on iOS and the web, with an Android release expected to follow soon.