After Elon Musk and Trump’s glitchy Spaces interview, X tests new video conferencing tool: “Already a strong alternative to Google Hangouts and certainly Microsoft Teams”

After Elon Musk and Trump's glitchy Spaces interview, X tests new video conferencing tool: "Already a strong alternative to Google Hangouts and certainly Microsoft Teams"

What you need to know

  • X is testing a new video conferencing tool to compete with Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and more.
  • The tool ships with many features, including pinning main speakers and participants, notifications when someone leaves a meeting, and more. 
  • It’s not yet clear when the tool will ship to general availability. 

As a long-time user and follower of tech developments, I find it intriguing to see X (formerly Twitter) venturing into the video conferencing realm. With the pandemic reshaping our work dynamics, this move seems like a natural progression for any tech giant. The tool’s features, such as visual notifications and speaker pinning, are promising additions that could potentially give it an edge over its competitors.


During the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak, many businesses shifted towards hybrid work models and working from home to prevent the virus’s spread. As a result, video conferencing tools such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and others gained significant importance in facilitating clear and productive communication within organizations.

After that, many organizations have incorporated remote work into their cost-cutting strategies, and it appears that X (previously Twitter) is planning to follow suit. According to a TechCrunch report, X is experimenting with a potential competitor for leading video conferencing tools.

Chris Park, an employee at X corporation, mentioned that their company was experimenting with a new video conferencing tool on a social media platform. Park described it as “already showing great promise compared to Google Hangouts, Zoom, AWS Chime, and definitely Microsoft Teams.” Early user responses have been generally favorable, and the following are some of its anticipated features:

  • Better visuals or notification when someone leaves or joins
  • Ability to pin main speakers or participants
  • Less back and forth change on main panel so I don’t keep seeing my awesome face (or yours)

Elon Musk, the owner of X, reacted to a post by Park with a fire symbol, possibly hinting that the tool is being developed and is ready for widespread release. This sparked excitement among users who pointed out the similarities between this situation and X’s Spaces feature.

“I really wish the design of these spaces were as impressive, but I find it disappointing that they don’t offer a live chat or group video calls in a horizontal format. However, it’s one of the underappreciated aspects of these spaces.”

Nian Owiji, the park’s app researcher, shared that they are planning to introduce a unique code system for their upcoming video conferencing tool, enabling hosts to invite attendees effortlessly. This update is expected on Spaces soon.

It’s uncertain at this point when X plans to make their video conferencing tool available to everyone. There’s limited information about whether X’s Spaces feature might be incorporated into the tool or parts of it, but it’s plausible.

In early this month, Elon Musk and ex-President Donald J. Trump engaged in a conversation on X’s audio live-streaming platform, Spaces. They touched upon politics and various other topics. Regrettably, their discussion encountered some bumps at the beginning as users experienced error messages, dead air, blocked access to the live stream, and hold music instead.

Instead of attributing the delay to himself, Musk swiftly pointed the finger at a DDoS (distributed denial of service) attack, causing the interview to be postponed by more than 40 minutes.

Read More

2024-08-28 12:40