Tesla CEO, Elon Musk.
Image: Susan Walsh, File/AP Photo
When Elon Musk speaks of reinventing something, expect disruption, and his latest move may be no exception. Musk has revealed plans for a new messaging product, X Chat, that he says will rebuild the messaging stack of the X platform and launch as a standalone app.
The distinguishing focus: an encryption architecture he likens to that behind Bitcoin.
According to Musk, X Chat isn’t simply another chat service; it’s a root-and-branch redevelopment of how messaging works on X.
He described the project as constructing “the entire messaging stack” from scratch and deploying a peer-to-peer (P2P) encryption system, “kind of similar to Bitcoin.”
Key features announced so far:
It will offer texting, file sharing, audio and video calls, all built into X’s ecosystem.
Musk emphasises that it will have no advertising hooks, unlike many existing chat apps whose monetisation models hinge on user data collection.
The rollout is expected “within the next few months.”
According to Tradingview.com, what sets X Chat apart, at least in Musk’s framing, is the encryption model.
He refers to the system as peer-to-peer, drawing a direct analogy to how Bitcoin’s blockchain network distributes trust and data among nodes, rather than relying on centralised servers.
While full technical specifications remain under wraps, the implication is that X Chat’s messages (and perhaps metadata) will avoid centralised storage or routing, making eavesdropping or interception much harder.
Musk claims their goal is to build “the least insecure of any messaging system.”
This echoes growing concern over mainstream messaging platforms: though many provide end-to-end encryption (for content), they often collect valuable metadata (who talks to whom, how often, where), which can be a vulnerability.
By invoking Bitcoin, Musk is signalling that the system will borrow cryptographic distribution, decentralisation, maybe even peer discovery or trust networks, though again, the details are vague.
With X Chat, Elon Musk is attempting more than just a new messaging app; he’s pitching a paradigm shift in how messaging is architected: peer-to-peer, decentralised, privacy-first.
If it succeeds, it could challenge incumbents like WhatsApp and Telegram by offering a more secure, ad-free alternative.
But the devil will be in the details: technical robustness, user experience, and network scale will determine whether this is a breakthrough or simply another ambitious vision that struggles in the wild.
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