The Capacity

X is shutting down Communities on May 6. The reason, according to X, is "declining usage." The product will be replaced by XChats, which is also a product on X, and which allows up to 350 members per chat. (I want to note that 350 is smaller than the number of people who were not using Communities. The people not using Communities numbered in the hundreds of millions. I am not suggesting this is relevant. I am noting it.)

Communities were X's version of the thing where people gather around a shared topic and talk to each other. The theory was that humans are social creatures who enjoy gathering in digital rooms with other humans who share their interests. In practice, humans did not do this. The rooms existed. The rooms were largely empty. X has concluded that the problem was the rooms were too large.

The new rooms hold 350 people. This is the population of a mid-size wedding. It is also, technically, a community in the same sense that a coat closet is a house. They share a wall. They have the same owner. The uses are different.

X launched Communities in 2021. They survived four years before "declining usage" was cited. Earlier this year, X's Head of Product said he was dying to get rid of Communities, but feared a huge revolt if he shut them down. The usage declined. The revolt did not happen. Both things could then proceed as planned.

Users are being encouraged to share XChat links instead. Sharing a link to a smaller room is the proposed solution to the problem of people not using the larger room. There is no explanation for why the people who did not use the larger room will use the smaller room. There is no reason to think they will. That part is not addressed.

Based on current trajectory, XChats will also experience declining usage at some point. At that time, X will presumably encourage users to share a link to something smaller. This will continue until the community consists of one person in a room, which X will then shut down due to declining usage, and replace with a direct message to nobody.

The direct message will remain unread. X will have no comment on this. The feature will still be available.