X to Introduce Video and Audio Calls Without Phone Number

X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, is set to expand its offerings by introducing video and audio calls.

Owner Elon Musk said in a Thursday (Aug. 31) post on the platform that video and audio calls are coming to X. He added that the calls will work on iOS, Android, Mac and PC; that no phone number will be needed; and that “X is the effective global address book.”

Video & audio calls coming to X:

– Works on iOS, Android, Mac & PC
– No phone number needed
– X is the effective global address book

That set of factors is unique.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 31, 2023

“That set of factors is unique,” Musk added in the post.

This move is part of Musk’s vision to transform X into an all-encompassing “everything app” similar to Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s WeChat, Bloomberg reported Thursday. X CEO Linda Yaccarino has previously mentioned that the platform will also include features such as payments and banking, further expanding its capabilities beyond a traditional social network.

To support these new features, X has updated its privacy policy to include the collection of biometric data, although the platform does not specify what it considers biometric, the report said. Biometric data typically refers to information obtained from a person’s face, eyes and fingerprints. X has also stated that it will gather information about users’ jobs and education histories.

Since acquiring Twitter for $44 billion last year, Musk has made several changes to the platform, including replacing the signature blue bird logo, reinstating formerly banned users, and removing the ability to block accounts.

To make the leap into the super app realm, X must be able to convincingly solve for a real-world, right-now problem, QED Investors Partner Amias Gerety told PYMNTS’ Karen Webster in an interview posted Aug. 3.

The super apps dominating the market today found hyper-scalable success by realizing there was a problem to be solved by introducing payments into networks that had already been established, Gerety said at the time.

“Maybe X becomes the place where we finally conquer social shopping because payments are embedded,” Gerety said. “Maybe the everything app is the everyday app.”

In other recent news from X, the company has made the popular X management tool X Pro part of its X Premium subscription service, begun winding down its promoted accounts ad format and rolled out brand safety tools for advertisers.