X Launches Custom Timelines to Replace Declining Communities Feature

After weeks of testing topic-based feed filters, X has officially launched Custom Timelines — a feature that lets users pin subject-specific feeds directly to their home tab.

The new option gives users access to feeds built around 75 of the most discussed topics on the platform, which can be added as swipeable alternative streams within the app. X’s Head of Product Nikita Bier described it as one of the most significant changes the app has seen in recent memory.

How Grok Powers the Experience

The topic feeds are driven by X’s Grok AI system, which analyzes every post to filter the most relevant content into each stream. Crucially, the results are personalized — rather than simply surfacing the most popular posts, Grok ranks content based on each individual user’s engagement habits and interests. This means two users following the same topic could see very different feeds tailored to their behavior.

Communities on the Way Out

The launch of Custom Timelines also serves as a replacement for X’s Communities feature, which Bier confirmed will be deprecated on May 6th due to declining usage. This marks a striking reversal — just two years ago, X reported that time spent in Communities had grown 600% year-over-year, with 650,000 community posts created daily.

Custom Timelines will roll out first to Premium subscribers on iOS, with Android support coming soon. X is also introducing an option for users to snooze specific topics. Whether this feature succeeds where Communities ultimately fell short remains to be seen.