Elon Musk has hinted at the launch of a new email service called Xmail, which could rival Google’s Gmail. The new offering will reportedly have a cleaner and simpler design than Gmail, which is often criticized for its archaic layout. The billionaire was responding to an X user’s post when he said the new offering would “reimagine” how the email ecosystem works, which is currently dominated by Gmail.
“Having an @x.com email address is the only thing that can stop me from using Gmail!” said one user, to which Mr Musk replied: “Interesting. We need to rethink the way messaging, including email, works in general.”
‘Yes. On the list of things to do,” he added later.
Interesting.
We need to rethink the way messaging, including email, works in general. https://t.co/6wZAslJLTc
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 15, 2024
Mr Musk also confirmed that Xmail will have a DM-style interface, similar to current messaging platforms. Currently, emails contain long message strings with formatting that does not translate into a good viewing and reading experience for most users.
“I’d like an email address that goes into a plain text DM inbox and abstracts away the annoying and cluttered threads/formatting mess that email brings. The main nice thing about email is that it’s a universal handling system and is compatible with everything, so you don’t have to download a new app, enter a contact, or connect with anyone,” another user wrote, to which Mr. Musk replied, “That’s exactly what we’re going to do.”
TBH, I just want an email address that goes into a plain txt DM inbox and abstracts the annoying and messy threads/formatting mess that is email
The main nice thing about email is that it is a universal handle system and is compatible with everything so you don’t… https://t.co/qNpwh2DhoA
— Ross (@rpoo) December 16, 2024
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The Internet responds
The news sparked intense discussions on social media with users curious about how X would evolve from a social media company to compete with established tech giants.
“I can’t wait for be great!”
A third commented: “Yes, please make it easy to find the emails you want. Let GROK find what I’m looking for, summarize it and even write my emails.”
According to a report by Forbes, Experts claim that while developing the platform may be easier, it will take some effort to scale it up to the level of Gmail.