A single reply caused panic about DMs on X, and now the company is walking it back

It all started when an X user flagged a bug and tagged an engineer to take a look. The response? “This page will be deleted soon, so no.” That cryptic reply led to a follow-up question: “So no more message requests?” The engineer doubled down, saying, “No, not like request messages, but like the whole entire DMs will be gone soon.”

That reply quickly spread across the platform, triggering everything from genuine concern to outright disbelief. Many users questioned why anyone would continue using X if the company really removed one of its most essential features. The replies rolled in: “That sounds like a terrible idea” and “Why have Twitter at that point?” echoed across threads and reposts.

But just a few hours later, another X employee stepped in to clear the air. The original message, they said, was misunderstood. It wasn’t that the company was planning to eliminate DMs altogether, but rather that the DM page — as in the current user interface or its backend structure — was due for a rewrite. Not a removal. The original engineer also updated their post to clarify the same.

This sort of confusion has become something of a trend at X since Elon Musk took over the company. It’s not uncommon for feature changes, updates, or internal projects to be hinted at by employees in casual replies rather than through structured announcements. While this can give users a sense of direct access to the inner workings of the platform, it also opens the door for major misunderstandings, especially when the wording is vague or technical.

Right now, the DM system on X remains fully operational. While it’s likely that a redesign or backend overhaul is in the works, there’s no indication that the company plans to remove messaging as a feature. I’m of the opinion that taking a step like that would be a drastic shift, especially for a platform that increasingly positions itself as a space for creators, professionals, and communities to connect beyond public posts.