Elon Musk's X/Twitter to Undergo Major Redesign Removing Engagement Buttons

Elon Musk’s X, formerly known as Twitter, is set to implement a significant redesign that will remove interaction and engagement buttons from posts on users’ timelines, sparking controversy among its user base.

Mashable reports that X, the social media platform previously called Twitter, is planning to overhaul its user interface by removing the familiar repost, like, and reply buttons from individual posts on users’ timelines. This change, confirmed by X owner Elon Musk, will also see the removal of engagement counts for these actions from each post.

The redesign, first uncovered by researcher Aaron Perris of MacRumors, aims to streamline the user experience by introducing new interaction methods. Instead of tapping buttons, users will be required to swipe left or right on a post to like or reply, respectively. For iOS users, a force touch on a post will open a menu with additional options.

Musk defended the change, stating, “It’s awesome. Just swipe left to like and right to reply.” However, the initial reaction from users has been largely negative, with many questioning the necessity and usefulness of such a drastic alteration to the platform’s core functionality.

This redesign is the latest in a series of significant changes implemented since Musk acquired the company in October 2022. Previous modifications include rebranding the platform from Twitter to X, making most “likes” on the platform private, and temporarily removing headlines from article links shared within posts.

The only metric that will remain visible on posts in the timeline will be the view count, which will be relocated to the upper right-hand corner of each post. This aligns with Musk’s previous statement from October 2023, where he expressed his intention to remove “all the action buttons with their superfluous interaction counts from the main timeline.”

Critics argue that this change may negatively impact user engagement and the platform’s overall usability. The ability to quickly gauge a post’s popularity and interact with content through easily accessible buttons has been a cornerstone of social media platforms, including X/Twitter, for years.

However, Musk has shown a willingness to reverse course on unpopular changes in the past. When the removal of article headlines was met with widespread criticism, X reintroduced them less than two months later, albeit with a slightly modified design. In response to concerns about the current redesign, Musk has indicated that if the changes prove to be unpopular, they may be reverted.

This latest update comes at a time when X is facing increased competition from other social media platforms and ongoing scrutiny over its content moderation policies and user experience. The removal of engagement buttons represents a significant departure from industry norms and could potentially influence how users interact with content on the platform.