Musk says Twitter will soon allow calls, encrypted messages

May 9 (Reuters) – Twitter Inc CEO Elon Musk on Tuesday revealed details of new features, including adding calls and encrypted messages coming to the platform.

Last year, Musk flagged plans for “Twitter 2.0 The Everything App,”[ads1]; which he said would have features like encrypted direct messaging (DM), long tweets and payments.

“Soon, voice and video chat will come from your handle to anyone on this platform, so you can talk to people anywhere in the world without giving them your phone number,” Musk said in a tweet Tuesday.

The calling feature on Twitter will bring the microblogging platform in line with the likes of Meta’s ( META.O ) social media applications, Facebook and Instagram, which have similar features.

Musk said a version of encrypted instant messaging will be available on Twitter starting Wednesday, but did not say whether calls will be encrypted.

Twitter said this week that it will begin a cleanup process by removing and archiving accounts that have been inactive for several years.

Reporting by Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru; Editing of Lincoln Feast.

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