I have a fix for anyone who has a Thinkpad X1  and is stuck with a black screen on boot with Esc key on. I have had this issue since I upgraded to Windows 11. I finally figured out the fix. First you will need to disconnect the power and hold the power button for 30 seconds to get it to boot up (note: it could take several tries before it will boot up).

Once you are able to get it to boot, hit Enter when you see the Lenovo logo. 

1. Enter into the BIOS and search for a menu entry labeled Boot or Startup.
2. When viewing the boot order I had a Windows Icon at the top. I reset the boot menu to default and it wiped away any reference to Windows.
3. Save the config and reboot.

This is what finally fixed the issue. I noticed this boot problem on my laptop after I upgraded to Windows 11. It was intermittent at first then it would black screen every time. Hopefully this fixes others who are dealing with this frustration. I was about to throw out my Lenovo and go back to Apple.

Regards,

Mike

Hello mikeb435 and welcome to community forums!

Thank you for sharing.

Regards

Jwes_Lenovo