Making an x-ception

Elon Musk has rebanded the app formerly known as Twitter and internet was abuzz last week.

x.com now redirects from Twitter.com. The San Francisco HQ lost its blue bird and sported a flashing X (albeit briefly as it was taken down due to complaints that they didn’t have the right planning permissions to erect it)!And in Apple and Google app stores the app now appears as X.

When it was rumoured that this would be the new branding, we did wonder how a one letter company could get through all the technical problems registering… well it seems the platforms made a big x-ception!

There are 26 letters in the English alphabet but Apple’s App Store platform has an unwritten rule that app names should be at least two characters long.

X is the future state of unlimited interactivity – centered in audio, video, messaging, payments/banking – creating a global marketplace for ideas, goods, services, and opportunities. Powered by AI, X will connect us all in ways we’re just beginning to imagine.

CEO Linda Yaccarino

Of course Twitter was a worldwide known name. It was much recognised and loved and changing something can lose brand loyalty. Despite the meaningful role many logos play in our cultural life, there is someone behind the curtain, pulling the strings, and Musk decided it was time to pull, hard!

Users displayed their annoyance on the U.S. App Store, where there was a surge in 1-star negative reviews.

Nearly 78% of all the U.S. iOS reviews of the newly renamed X app have been 1-star reviews since July 24th, the day of the official rebrand.

(market intelligence firm Sensor Tower)