What X App Needs To Do To Become a SuperApp
While technical expertise is crucial in creating an ecosystem of apps, X will need to partner with a reliable payments provider and establish strong collaborations with insurance companies, financial service providers, and government institutions to ensure its success. Fortunately, Musk’s vast network already includes the necessary components to forge strong alliances and create a Super-App. Alternatively, X can choose to forge ahead independently and develop these ecosystems on its own, a path that its leader has successfully undertaken with other ambitious projects.”
Humphrey Ho, Managing Partner Hylink Group Americas
Elon Musk teased the public for months about transforming Twitter into an “everything app” called X. Recently, Twitter’s iconic bluebird, “Larry,” was retired and replaced with a black-and-white logo of an X, officially launching the awaited super-app.
A super-app is a vision of a single app to rule them all. While ambitious, Musk is currently far from realizing this vision.
Meta is already creating an interconnected network of Apps by making Threads compatible with ActivityPub, a decentralized social networking protocol, via which the app will become interoperable with other servers like WordPress, Mastodon, and Tumblr.
This seamless integration of Threads into a larger environment of already-existing apps seems like a move in the right direction to convert Meta’s holdings into a super-app… eventually.
X Corp’s online presence, on the other hand, is limited to X, formerly Twitter. So, what are the hurdles that Musk faces to turn X into a super app? Maybe looking at forging alliances across communication channels, building an environment from the ground up, and taking WeChat as an example could be the key to success.
Tencent is a giant of many heads, so it is no wonder that they have managed to turn WeChat into a ‘one-stop’ shop for social and transactional moments in China.
One of the main reasons why WeChat is so successful has to do with the fact that it has created an online environment where everything converges.
WeChat has integrated mini-apps into its central platform to create an online environment.
Mini-apps are sub-applications that users can add or remove as needed without downloading a dozen other apps onto their devices. In this case, the mini-apps offer specific services, such as food delivery, payment services, or even booking appointments, all without exiting WeChat.
As X ventures into uncharted territory in the world of apps, Musk has the opportunity to build an expansive super-app through alliances that were previously unimaginable. By leveraging his network, forging strategic partnerships, and learning from successful examples like WeChat, X can position itself as a dominant player in the market and ultimately achieve the vision of becoming a SuperApp.
