• by Colin Kirkland , August 27, 2024

X is taking its “video-first” strategy even further. To compete in the business-to-business market and take on other video-conferencing platforms, the social platform formerly known as Twitter is testing a video conferencing tool, which would allow users to start conferences directly from the app.

The tool was first shared by X employee Chris Park on the platform late last week. In his post, Park said that the tool received minimal feedback from his team, and that it would provide a “strong alternative” to Google Hangouts, Zoom, AWS Chime, and Microsoft Teams. 

The feedback Park did receive includes developing better notification to indicate people joining or leaving conversations, as well as the ability to pin main speakers or participants. 

Elon Musk, the owner of X, responded to Park’s post with a fire emoji but did not allude to an eventual rollout plan. 

Several app researchers, including P4mui and Nima Owji, pointed out additional features built into the test. For example, P4mui demonstrated that like other popular online conferencing tools, users are able to create new meetings directly from the iOS X app, with an option to schedule meetings for later.

Whereas Owji showed that the conference tool may allow hosts to implement a unique code for each meeting that participants have to enter in order to join. 

Since Musk took over the app in 2022, X has ventured deeper into video capabilities and launches, including exclusive content deals with various media groups and personalities, including the WWE, Tucker Carlson, and Tulsi Gabbard for recurring short-form in-app shows.

More notable, however, is its Spaces product, which Musk has used to livestream conversations with high-profile political personalities including, most recently, former President Donald Trump. However, these public broadcasts have been met with an abundance of technical issues that have led to postponed and interrupted programming. 

Earlier this year, X also launched a person-to-person video calling feature in the app, which has faced scrutiny over privacy issues, like the lack of default IP address masking protection. 

A video-conferencing tool could also compliment X’s recently added job search tool by building out its business-to-business offerings.