The second generation Moto X has a design similar to the previous model with a curved rear, but now features an aluminium frame, a front-facing mono speaker, and a set of infrared motion sensors.

[5][6] in May 2014, Motorola announced it would close the Fort Worth plant it had used to construct Moto X smartphones domestically due to high operational costs.

[5] The second generation Moto X ships with Android 4.4.4 "KitKat", using a mostly stock user experience with additional proprietary software features; the voice-activated personal assistant Moto Voice (formerly Touchless Control) now includes additional commands (such as those for launching selected apps, providing instructions for navigating to a location, toggling sleep mode by saying "Good morning", taking selfies, etc.)

The device's infrared sensors can be used for motion-activated gestures, such as invoking Moto Display (formerly Active Notifications) when the phone is sleeping, and for dismissing alarms and incoming calls.

[11] On November 12, 2015, Motorola started the rollout of its first Android 6.0 "Marshmallow" update for Moto X (2nd Gen) units in Brazil and India, following which OTA began rolling out in other countries.