Xbox has announced that they are re-introducing the old friend request system, bringing memories from the Xbox 360 era. Friend requests were discontinued with the release of Xbox One, replacing it with a follow system which is used by many social media platforms.
The re-introduced system will be tested first, available to Xbox Insider and PC review users. After the testing phase is over it will be launched for all users.
People who you follow won’t be gone from people tab, however, as follows and friends will automatically be transferred to the new system. The same people tab will be where you can manage your friends and add other players as well.