An XPhone Powered by Starlink and Grok. Questioning the Near-Future Game Changer
Think of an XPhone that you can buy anywhere in the world with a $24.99 subscription including the phone, internet, and Twitter Plus (which comes with Grok). Do you think it’s a good idea or it is even feasible? Let’s dive into it.
How far are we from owning an XPhone equipped with hyper-fast internet anywhere in the world, whether we are on a plane or at the top of Mount Kilimanjaro, only paying $24.99/month, while offering free access to X Plus and Grok, the most advanced AI (in the near future) becoming our everyday companion and the best tutor ever?
I believe we are not far from the above vision, at least at first sight.
If XPhone becomes a reality, then, X would disrupt two major industries smartphone and mobile service providers. So, X can become an alternative for the iPhone and AT&T.
This would give Elon Musk all the capital he needs to occupy Mars and even accelerate that occupation by bombing it thermonuclearly.
Let’s question the basic feasibility of a standalone XPhone by asking the following questions:
Does Starlink have the technology to become a cellular service provider?
Does Starlink have enough satellites to provide the speed and reach globally?
Which company would X collaborate with to produce the XPhones?
What would XPhone mean for X?
Let’s dive into it.
Does Starlink have the Technology to Become a Cellular Service Provider?
The Starlink system is designed to work with existing LTE phones wherever there is a clear view of the sky, without requiring changes to hardware, firmware, or special apps, providing seamless access to text, voice, and data.
SpaceX aims to equip its satellites with an “advanced eNodeB modem,” effectively turning a Starlink satellite into a “cellphone tower in space,” allowing network integration similar to a standard roaming partner.
Does Starlink have Enough Satellites to Provide Speed and Global Coverage?
There are currently 5,000 Starlink satellites in the low orbit, which is 342 miles or 550 km.
When completed, there will be a total of 12,000 satellites around the world providing global internet.
Therefore, we can conclude that Starlink already covers 40% of the world.
Starlink provides download speeds between 25 to 100 Mbps, upload speeds ranging from 5 to 10 Mbps, and latency spanning 25 to 50 ms.
However, independent research conducted by Ookla in the first quarter of 2023 revealed that the average download speeds for Starlink users were approximately 66 Mbps, with upload speeds nearing 8 Mbps and a latency of 62 ms.
These speeds are suitable for activities like online shopping and high-definition streaming but may fall short for video calls, certain online gaming scenarios, or live-streaming gameplay.
In contrast, mobile service providers like T-Mobile deliver download speeds ranging from 72 to 245 Mbps and upload speeds between 15 to 31 Mbps.
T-Mobile’s 5G Home Internet speeds are comparable to those offered by Starlink, positioning it as a competitive option for those seeking high-speed internet access.
Which Company would X Collaborate with to Produce the XPhones?
We know that Tesla has collaborated with Panasonic to manufacture batteries from the very beginning. Only recently, they started building their own batteries.
Even Apple doesn’t produce iPhones and the majority of manufacturing is done by Foxconn in China in one of the biggest manufacturing complexes in the world with over 200,000 workers working on producing the iPhone.
Google Pixels are made mainly in India and Google doesn’t do any manufacturing, but only provides Android software and design.
This means that X can put their trust in the manufacturing experts, which could become a competition as Amazon did to build its headquarters.
Amazon created a contest among the cities to pick the city with the best conditions and incentives.
In the same way, Tesla behaved the same way to build its first Gigafactory and thanks to some billion dollar tax and other incentives, Nevada won.
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X can launch a contest in the same way among the cell phone manufacturers or it can create its factory using the know-how from the top experts.
Remember that that is what Elon Musk did to build a ChatGPT competitor, X.ai, gathering the most brilliant minds of AI in the world.
In the end, they created GROK in a few months with a competing capacity to GPT 3.5.
What would XPhone mean for X?
In my humble opinion, with one word, everything.
The XPhone would bring the following benefits to X:
X.com, therefore, Grok, would be used by everyone. This can also mean that X can become the default search engine on XPhones powered by Grok. Elon Musk was already working on a search engine similar to Google before Google. Think what he can do now.
X becoming the next bank to make any financial transaction globally would become a reality.
The X business would not only thrive, but the XPhone would help the company to become the biggest AI company in the world, faster.
In the end, XPhone, X, and Grok could become the most used phones, social media, payment platforms, and AI companions in the world.
What do you think?
Is this feasible or just a crazy fantasy?
Do you think $24.99/mo subscription model would work for X and everyone?
Would you get an XPhone?
Anything to add to the technological or economical feasibility?
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