XChat, a new standalone app for accessing X’s messaging feature, is now available for download on iOS. While X first hinted it would separate direct messaging from the main X app in 2025, for now, XChat is available within the original X app, on the web, and as this new dedicated app.
According to its launch video, the new XChat app includes many modern messaging features that X had already brought to its chat function. These include the ability to delete and edit messages, block screenshots, and send disappearing messages. The new XChat app also supports video and audio calls, and X claims that all messages sent through XChat are end-to-end encrypted for privacy.
XChat is also expected to become the new home for groups that formed around X’s Communities feature. The social platform recently announced that it would close down Communities at the end of May. It suggested that XChat’s support for larger group chats could be a good alternative. Currently, XChat’s group chats can have up to 350 participants, but X plans to increase this number in the future.
When Elon Musk first rebranded Twitter as X, his original vision was to create an “everything app.” This app would combine features like an algorithmic feed, messaging, job boards, and even payments all in one place. A standalone messaging app like XChat seems to go against that “everything app” idea. However, it might show where X is headed in 2026. The company is now a subsidiary of xAI, and xAI itself is part of SpaceX. Musk’s strong focus on AI appears to be the main priority, making the idea of simply copying WeChat perhaps less important for now.
