Elon Musk is once again making headlines — this time with a bold update to his social media platform X.

Musk has announced that the new X messaging service is being rebuilt from the ground up using Rust and a form of encryption he refers to as “Bitcoin-style.” While the term might raise eyebrows in the crypto world — since Bitcoin transactions are famously transparent and not encrypted — Musk’s move clearly signals a shift toward better privacy and security for users of X’s Direct Messages (DMs).

The new X messaging service is being designed with stronger end-to-end protection in mind. Though Musk’s comparison to Bitcoin encryption is technically flawed, it appears he’s aiming to highlight the decentralized, secure nature of the upgrade. It’s all part of a much bigger plan: to transform X into a full-fledged “everything app.”

According to Musk, this new encrypted messaging system is a crucial building block for X Payments, the upcoming financial feature set to launch later this year. X Payments is expected to allow users to send money, shop online, and potentially bypass traditional banking systems altogether. The ambition? To turn X into a Western version of China’s WeChat — combining social networking, messaging, and financial transactions all in one platform.

However, turning that vision into reality won’t be easy. While Musk has the tech pedigree — having co-founded PayPal — building an all-in-one super app is a challenge that has tripped up many others in Western markets. X’s shrinking user base and fierce competition from more established apps like WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook only make the journey tougher.

Still, there’s reason to watch closely. The revamped X messaging service is set to roll out to X Premium subscribers this week — unless the team encounters unexpected scaling issues.