Twitter changed its name and logo on its way to becoming an “everything app.” Elon Musk said that he seeks to guarantee freedom of expression
Elon Musk explained the reason behind his decision to change Twitter’s name to “X” in a tweet on Monday night, saying it’s part of his broader effort to transform the social media platform into a so-called “app of everything” and stated that the brand of the little bird did not fit that objective.
The billionaire said he acquired Twitter “both to ensure free speech and to speed up X, the app for everything” and that the rebranding was “not just a company rebranding itself, but doing the same thing.” ”.
Musk said the Twitter name made sense “back when it was just 140-character messages going back and forth, like birds tweeting,” but the site was much different now, allowing users to post “just about anything, including hours of video.” ”.
Musk then alluded to his earlier promises to expand the platform into financial services, saying he will add “comprehensive communications and the ability to run your entire financial world” in the coming months.
Once upon a time a bird
The X Corp. chief executive said that because of these changes, the “Twitter name doesn’t make sense…so we have to say goodbye to the bird.”
Musk’s comments are the first time he has addressed the intent behind the name change in depth, after suddenly announcing the move on Saturday night.
On Sunday, the company’s CEO, Linda Yaccarino, offered a vague summary of the change, saying that X will be “focused on audio, video, messaging, payments/banking” and will be “powered by AI.”
Despite Musk and Yaccarino’s bold claims, some commenters and brands expressed confusion and wondered why the company dumped such an established and recognizable brand. Others insist they plan to keep calling it Twitter. Some advertisers have raised concerns that the rebranding could drive users away from the platform, while others worry that the suddenness of the change could disrupt their existing campaigns.
Bloomberg columnist Matt Levine also wondered why Musk paid $44 billion to acquire the company if he didn’t want “his employees (whom he fired) or his code (which he regularly trashes) or his brand (which he abandoned) or your most dedicated users (whom you are trying to scare away).”
The rebranding process began Sunday when Musk helped design a new logo that ended up being a twist on an existing Unicode glyph. The billionaire then announced that X.com was redirecting to the Twitter home page.
Other changes began rolling out early Monday, with the platform’s homepage ditching its iconic blue bird logo. The transition is not yet fully complete, as the company’s “About Us” page still displayed the old branding at press time.