Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Twitter, has made a surprising and controversial move by changing the logo of the social media platform to a simple X and then reverting it back to the original design within hours. Here is a summary of what happened and why Elon Musk changes Twitter logo to X and then back again.
The rebranding of Twitter to X
On Sunday, July 23, 2023, Musk announced on Twitter that he was rebranding the platform to X, a name that he said was inspired by his other ventures such as xAI and SpaceX¹. He also said that he wanted to create an “everything app” like China’s WeChat, which offers a variety of services such as messaging, payments, e-commerce, social media, and more¹². Musk said that he had already changed the business name of Twitter to X Corp and that he was looking for a new logo for the platform. He asked his followers to submit their designs and said that if someone came up with a “good enough” logo that night, he would make it go live the next day¹.
The crowdsourced X logo
Musk received thousands of responses from his followers, who suggested various designs for the X logo. Some were creative, some were humorous, and some were downright bizarre. Musk eventually pinned a tweet from a user named Sawyer Merritt, who posted a video of a white X on a black background¹. The design was simple and minimalist, but also resembled a Unicode character and a font from Monotype’s Special Alphabets 4². Musk said that this would be the “interim” logo for X and that it would probably change later¹.
The logo change and reversal
On Monday, July 24, 2023, Musk made good on his promise and changed the logo of Twitter to the X design from Merritt. The change was visible on the website and on Musk’s profile picture. However, the mobile app still showed the old Twitter logo. Many users were confused and surprised by the sudden change, which seemed to abandon the iconic blue bird and the name Twitter that had been associated with the platform for over 15 years²³.
On Tuesday, July 25, 2023, Musk changed the logo again. This time, he made the lines of the X slightly thicker, which he said was more “art deco” than the previous version². He also updated the website and his profile picture with the new design. However, within hours, he changed his mind and said that he did not like the thicker bars. He reverted the logo back to the original thin X design and said that the logo would evolve over time².
The implications of the rebranding
The rebranding of Twitter to X has raised many questions and concerns among users, experts, and observers. Some have praised Musk for his boldness and innovation, while others have criticized him for his impulsiveness and lack of planning. Some have wondered how X will compete with other platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat. Some have also questioned how X will handle issues such as privacy, security, moderation, misinformation, and regulation²³⁴.
The rebranding of Twitter to X is one of the most dramatic and unexpected changes in the history of social media. It remains to be seen how it will affect the future of online communication and interaction.
(1) Elon Musk Changes X Logo—And Then Changes It Back Again—As Twitter …. https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/07/26/elon-musk-changes-x-logo-and-then-changes-it-back-again-as-twitter-rebrand-evolves/.
(2) Elon Musk just changed Twitter’s logo again — sort of. https://www.theverge.com/2023/7/25/23807418/twitter-x-logo-design-change-elon-musk.
(3) Elon Musk reveals new Twitter logo X | Twitter | The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/jul/24/elon-musk-reveals-the-new-twitter-logo-x.
(4) Twitter has officially changed its logo to ‘X’ | TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2023/07/24/twitter-has-officially-changed-its-logo-to-x/.