What is X?

After a mascot change and rebrand following Elon Musk’s acquisition, the social media platform now known as X, has seen some evolution in the last couple of years. The platform emphasizes free speech, attracting both praise and criticism for its approach. Whether it lives up to that ideal is a matter of opinion, but for those new to the platform, here’s a breakdown of what X is and how it works.

X (Formerly Twitter) Explained

X, previously called Twitter, is a social media platform where people post short messages to communicate and connect with an audience or a “circle” of like-minded people, or accounts that cater to your interests.

You can follow people who post interesting takes on things or casual conversations, and others can follow you for the same. You can also interact with others by replying to their posts, quoting them, or liking posts shared by others. All-in-all, X is a social media platform where you can discover and indulge in topics, people, companies, and their conversations.

How Does X Work?

People can post a short message, images, or both at once. The post will then appear on the feeds of people who follow you. When your followers or you interact with content, it appears to the followers of your followers, and so on. At the end of the day, your post could end up reaching millions of users.

Twitter earned using only advertisements but after the acquisition and rebranding, Elon Musk introduced a subscription which increases the word limit from 280 words to 25,000, essentially making the platform a viable alternative if you want to start blogging. Here are all the perks of X Premium.

X premium also grants you access to Grok AI, gets rid of ads, boosts your post and reply visibility, and gets you the infamous blue checkmark. Premium can also pay you for posting, and grant access to analytics.

What Can You Use X For?

Most people use X primarily to stay up-to-date on latest trends and happenings around the world. News from experts and journalists, be it political, technological, or geographical, are quite popular on X. It also provides a platform for amateurs, students, and the working class to put their points across, combined with a gigantic base of influencers and video creators, it’s an excellent place to keep new knowledge flowing into your brain.

People use X as an advertising platform too. It’s easy advertising with high potential returns thanks to the ginormous audience that’s instantly available under the Post button. X can also be used as a messaging tool, and you can directly message those who have their DMs open.

Similarly, X has a trending section which shows topics based on the volume of posts people have posted, in different categories. Most of these trending topics will be catered to the kind of posts you interact with, based on the algorithm’s understanding of your interests.

X communities is another way to find like-minded people and groups, join them, and express yourself. Besides, the platform has plenty of nifty features that make it easier to filter or block content or people and search.

Who Is on X?

All kinds of people from celebrities to social media influencers, politicians, and big firms, including us ;). Anyone with an active internet connection can sign up and use X. You might also find some of the people who you take inspiration from, on the platform, and you can follow them.

While it’s called X still, people still haven’t abandoned the name Twitter, and it seems like the platform will be remembered as Twitter still until it exists. What are your thoughts about the social media platform? Let us know in the comments below.