Elon Musk has announced that those who subscribe to Twitter Blue – the premium tier – will be allowed to participate in voting on Twitter, he said on his social media platform.
Musk, the world’s richest man and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, bought Twitter last year for $44 billion and said on the microblogging website that he believed real accounts could participate and This is the only way to keep progressing. AI bots aside.
He also noted that subscribers to the premium service will also be eligible to appear in user “for you” recommendations.
The “For You” feed will suggest tweets that a user might like from accounts that are not followed, based on algorithms and user activity.
“Starting April 15th, only verified accounts will be eligible for you to join recommendations,” Musk said in a tweet Monday night. Advanced AI bot is the only realistic way to manage the crowd. It is otherwise a hopelessly losing battle.”
He also wrote: “That said, it’s fine to verify bot accounts if they follow the terms of service [and] don’t impersonate a human.”
That said, it’s ok to have verified bot accounts if they follow terms of service & don’t impersonate a human
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 28, 2023
Musk’s announcement drew the ire of hundreds of Twitter users.
One user said he couldn’t support it and that Musk needed to invest in talent and AI tech to detect bots on the platform.
“That’s not the way to go. It could taint the platform.”
Elon Musk replied: “My prediction is that this will be the only platform you can trust.”
Another user wrote: “So basically if you can’t pay for Twitter your voice can’t be amplified in ‘Town Square’?”
While another said: “How does this prevent verified accounts from gaining more visibility than unverified accounts (eg ‘notable figures’)?”
Prior to Musk’s takeover, notable and popular users were issued blue ticks after their authenticity was verified, but the policy was revised after the billionaire took over the microblogging website.
Now, it will be given to those who fulfill the stated requirements. It is possible that people will lose their check marks before April 1.
Musk has tried to attract people by encouraging them to follow a “for you” feed — which helps expand the account’s reach to more and more users with similar interests.
A Twitter Blue subscription is available on the web for $8 per month or $84 per year, while it is available via iOS and Android for $11 per month ($115 per year).
