Millions of users across the globe faced disruptions on Monday as X, the social media giant owned by Elon Musk, experienced a widespread outage. Many were greeted with a frustrating “posts aren’t loading right now” error, making it impossible to access their feeds.
Extent of the Outage
According to DownDetector, a platform that monitors internet service disruptions, reports of issues with X spiked twice between 4 AM and 11 AM ET. NetBlocks, an organization that tracks cybersecurity and digital governance, also confirmed the disruption.
“X (formerly Twitter) is experiencing international outages, though this is not related to country-level internet restrictions or filtering,” NetBlocks reported.
The disruption affected users worldwide, highlighting the platform’s massive reach. X reportedly serves around 600 million users, making it one of the most widely used social networks.
X’s Struggles in the Musk Era
Since Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter in 2022, the platform has faced major transformations, including mass layoffs, policy changes, and increasing competition. Musk’s vocal support for former U.S. President Donald Trump, coupled with growing concerns about misinformation on the platform, has led to advertisers pulling out and many users migrating to alternatives like Meta’s Threads and the decentralized Bluesky network.
To stay competitive, X has ventured into artificial intelligence, integrating the Grok 3 chatbot from Musk’s AI company, xAI, into its premium services. However, these efforts have not prevented its declining influence in the social media landscape.
Restoration and Unanswered Questions
By the time of writing, X appeared to be back online, though some users continued experiencing glitches. Neither Elon Musk nor X’s official channels had issued any statements regarding the outage. The cause of the disruption remains unknown.
With X facing increasing pressure from competitors and ongoing controversies, users and advertisers will be watching closely to see how Musk’s platform navigates future challenges.