X is testing a new ad format that inserts testimonials right below posts that mention a company or product. An early test discovered by user Clicking on the link will take the user to Starlink’s website.
Nikita Bier, head of X products, confirmed the test by replying, “We are trying to create an advertising product, not an advertisement.”
Starlink ads are not currently visible to all users, but placeholders with the ads will be displayed.
If you visit user This box will display a random number of X posts, unless they are in a market where we are currently testing ads.
Where the ads appear, several commenters noticed a new addition asking, “lmao, did you add this Starlink button?”
In that thread, Bier responded to the suggestion that
X could not immediately be reached for comment. TechCrunch will update the article once the company responds.
This test follows news earlier this week that the company was launching a “paid partnership” label for creators. Instead of requiring creators to use hashtags like “advertising” or “paid partnership,” you can apply labels to their posts to comply with social media advertising regulations.
If creators’ sponsored posts are combined with embedded links to advertisers like the ads being tested, X could potentially attract more marketers to the platform. This will help increase creator usage of the app and allow it to compete more effectively with the larger social networks creators prefer, such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.
X has been chasing creator content for a while, even before it was called “X” and even before it was owned by Elon Musk. But apps have never really taken hold in this space. To date, the company has launched a variety of creator products, including payments for viral content, ad revenue sharing, and creator subscriptions.
This week, the company revamped its Creator Subscriptions service with a number of new features, including the ability to monetize individual threads.
X also announced Friday that Grok, its integrated chatbot, can now read X’s long-form content, known as Articles. This feature is also underutilized, as creators who publish long written text tend to prefer publishing through their own websites or newsletters.
