Twitter is rebranding to X, whether you like it or not

Elon Musk Twitter X
(Image credit: Elon Musk)

Elon Musk announced that Twitter is in the midst of rebranding to 'X', with some changes already starting to take effect.

We've been here before with other major Twitter announcements on weekends, such as introducing a limit on how many tweets you can view in one day if you're not a Twitter Blue subscriber, but this rebrand looks to be something that will stay for the foreseeable.

Musk seems to love the letter 'X', with SpaceX and Tesla's Model X. As of July 24, users are still puzzled as to why this change is taking place, and while CEO Linda Yaccarino has tried to explain why, it's only made matters worse.

X isn't marking the spot

If you've read the above tweet and you still feel confused, you're not alone. It's the type of statement that would fit better on a LinkedIn post with a photo of a MacBook Pro on a beach in Bali.

This change won't just affect you, but it will also affect the brands you use and the content you watch that all mention Twitter in some way - from the hashtags that are displayed, to hosts on reality shows mentioning the site to 'stay in the discussion'.

It's a total brand change that looks to clearly be massaging an ego for no rhyme or reason. For those who remember the days of Twitter when it brought opportunity, discussion, and fun chats with people you've never met before, that time looks to be wrapping up.

There are other alternatives you can look into, such as Bluesky, Threads, and Mastodon, but none of them have yet to be the go-to-replacement for Twitter as yet. 

Meta is still yet to bring a chronological feed and other features to Threads, and this impatience is making users leave the platform already. So while Musk is deciding to change a well-known brand to a terrible one, many users may still be stuck to X/Twitter until a true replacement arrives.

Daryl Baxter
Features Editor

Daryl is iMore's Features Editor, overseeing long-form and in-depth articles and op-eds. Daryl loves using his experience as both a journalist and Apple fan to tell stories about Apple's products and its community, from the apps we use every day to the products that have been long forgotten in the Cupertino archives.

Previously Software & Downloads Writer at TechRadar, and Deputy Editor at StealthOptional, he's also written a book, 'The Making of Tomb Raider', which tells the story of the beginnings of Lara Croft and the series' early development. His second book, '50 Years of Boss Fights', came out in June 2024, and has a monthly newsletter called 'Springboard'. He's also written for many other publications including WIRED, MacFormat, Bloody Disgusting, VGC, GamesRadar, Nintendo Life, VRV Blog, The Loop Magazine, SUPER JUMP, Gizmodo, Film Stories, TopTenReviews, Miketendo64, and Daily Star.