What? X is trialling a format that generates adverts when users organically mention a brand.
Last week, one user noticed a Starlink promotion appearing beneath a post that referenced X-owner Elon Musk’s satellite internet service. A small ‘Get Starlink’ call-to-action sat below the post, linking readers to the Starlink website for more information.
The format isn’t widely live yet. Most users only see a placeholder box beneath posts where the recommendation would appear, with the Starlink ad only showing in markets where the test is active.
So this is only for Musk-owned companies? Not necessarily. Nikita Bier, X’s head of product, said the platform is ‘trying to make an ad product that isn’t an ad’.
In a post on X, Bier explained that the format is designed to connect advertising with organic conversation on the platform. If a product is mentioned organically in a post, the platform may add a link or prompt directing readers to it.
‘I’ve spent thousands of dollars on products recommended to me by X users,’ Bier wrote. ‘It’s the most trustworthy source, aside from close friends. So it seemed natural to hyperlink them if they’re mentioned organically in conversation.’
Bier said users would not be compensated for ads displayed in this way because it would skew the incentives for such mentions.
What’s the challenge? The obvious difficulty will be making sure ads only appear in appropriate contexts.
It’s easy to imagine the system misfiring — for example, someone complaining about a hair in their Big Mac and the post generating a McDonald’s promo link underneath. X also doesn’t exactly have a spotless record when it comes to brand safety.
Still, if the platform can get the contextual targeting right, the format could offer a relatively unobtrusive way to introduce more advertising without significantly disrupting the user experience.
But isn’t X only used by Nazis, furries and bots now? Despite persistent narratives about declining usage, the platform still claims significant engagement. According to X, the platform recorded its biggest day ever on 1 March — only for that record to be broken again on 2 March as users flocked to the app for updates on the Iran war.
Exact figures weren’t disclosed, but it beat its previous highest usage day of 15 July 2024, when the platform recorded 417 billion global user-seconds.
The chaotic news cycle of 2026 — squeezing stories about Iran, Greenland, Maduro and the Epstein files into a few weeks — plays into X’s core strength of rapid, real-time information sharing. That appears to be attracting more people back who are looking for instant news and reactions.
Or maybe there are just a lot more Nazis and furries knocking about.
