Elon Musk’s vision for X, formerly known as Twitter, is taking shape as the platform explores live streaming capabilities, marking a significant step toward becoming an “everything app.” On January 7, 2025, Musk tested this feature by live-streaming himself playing a video game for 1 hour and 38 minutes, attracting approximately 3.8 million views and significant viewer engagement.
The live stream, titled “Testing X Streaming,” showcased X’s potential as a competitor to established platforms like Amazon’s Twitch and Google’s YouTube. During the broadcast, Musk casually engaged with viewers, highlighting the interactive nature of the platform.
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This move into live streaming aligns with Musk’s broader strategy to diversify X’s offerings beyond just text and video posts. The platform aims to provide real-time user interaction and seamless live gaming broadcasts. Musk has expressed his ambition to transform X into a comprehensive application combining functionalities from various platforms, including YouTube, LinkedIn, FaceTime, and banking.
Musk’s initial experiment with live streaming occurred in October 2023 when he streamed himself playing “Diablo IV” for 52 minutes. Despite experiencing technical glitches during that session, the stream garnered 20,000 views. The recent January 2025 stream demonstrated significant improvements, drawing millions of viewers and reaffirming X’s potential in live streaming.
While X’s entry into live streaming presents exciting opportunities, it also faces challenges. Users have reported issues such as flickering and audio quality during previous streams. Addressing these technical concerns will be crucial for X as it aims to compete effectively with established platforms.
As X continues to develop its live streaming capabilities, it signifies a bold move to enhance user engagement and adapt to the evolving social media landscape. For users in Africa and beyond, this could lead to greater access to diverse content and new avenues for digital interaction as the continent experiences rapid digital transformation.
Musk’s ongoing efforts reflect a commitment to innovation and a vision of making X a central hub for various digital experiences. As the platform evolves, monitoring how these developments impact user engagement and the broader social media ecosystem will be essential.
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Viewer comments from the live stream included insights on their experiences. @TheMarkGShow mentioned, “I tested it on Sunday night. The only issues I had was I was unable to see the chat where we were doing multi-platform streaming.” Another user, @Zayen30, commented, “@elonmusk, please kindly consider adding 2 or 3 payment options. Especially for countries that are restricted from using Stripe. A lot of content creators are working hard but ending up getting nothing. Please.”
@Ocelote986 added, “After revolutionizing so many things, he should move on to the important stuff, namely further developing VR gaming. -imo.” Lastly, @myl0tv remarked, “Looks amazing. Visually clean. Just clean up some audio stuff whether personal or stream wise and it’s goated. I even skipped around, and it still loaded quickly!”
As X continues to refine its offerings, feedback from users will play a vital role in shaping its future capabilities and enhancing the overall experience on the platform.
