Elon Musk has announced that Vine is coming back, but with an AI twist. In an X post on Thursday, Musk said the short-form video app will return in "AI form." He didn’t give a release date, feature details, or explain exactly what “AI form” means.

This isn’t the first time Musk has brought up the idea. Since acquiring Twitter in 2022, he has repeatedly mentioned plans to bring Vine back. In a poll on X posted after the acquisition, nearly five million users voted, with close to 70% saying they wanted the app to return.

Vine’s original rise and fall

Vine was a platform that allowed users to record and share looping videos no longer than six seconds. The app was acquired in 2012 by Twitter for a reported $30 million and launched the following year. The format was unique at the time, and it quickly became a creative outlet for comedy, music, and short skits. It was also one of the first platforms to shape influencer culture.

However, Vine was shut down in 2016 with no formal reason given. The timing coincided with the rise of Instagram and Snapchat. Vine co-founder Rus Yusupov has pointed to deeper issues behind its collapse. He said Vine didn’t build the right features fast enough, didn’t help creators make money, and failed to respond to trends like lip-syncing videos.

The competitive short-form video space

Any version of Vine returning now will be stepping into a very different landscape. TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts already dominate the short-form video space.

Musk has not stated a timeline for when the new Vine will launch or what exactly it will offer. It also remains unclear how AI will shape the experience. Will it auto-generate content? Help users edit videos? Suggest trends or music? Until the company shares more information, people can only speculate.

‍