Elon Musk has unveiled a fresh wave of changes to X’s advertising approach, this time, targeting both the look and cost of ads.
Hot on the heels of banning hashtags from Promoted Posts just last week, Musk announced that X will soon begin charging advertisers based on vertical ad size in an attempt to control the aesthetic of the platform.
“X is moving to charging for ads based on vertical size, so an ad that takes up the whole screen would cost more than an ad that takes up 1/4 of the screen,” Musk confirmed. “Otherwise the incentive is to create giant ads that impair the user experience”.
While the update isn’t live yet, and hasn’t been reflected in X’s official ad pricing documents, it marks a significant shift in strategy, likely to impact how brands design and budget their X campaigns moving forward.
Currently, ads vary in screen size depending on the creative format, from compact text ads to expansive video placements. But under the new system, screen real estate will come at a premium.
This isn’t unprecedented. Other platforms, like Meta, already take ad placement and size into account for pricing. Still, the announcement has raised eyebrows. Is this a logical adjustment, or a thinly veiled cash-grab from a platform still chasing profitability?
It may be both. As X aims to eliminate clutter and improve ad clarity, Musk’s emphasis on “neat and clean” feeds also coincides with the platform’s wider push to modernise how ads are displayed and measured.
The removal of hashtags, too, is part of this broader cleanup. As of June 27, ads on X no longer include the once-standard #ad disclosure. Instead, a small “Ad” label in the top right corner identifies paid content.
According to a spokesperson for X, the platform’s new xAI-powered recommendation engine, Grok, makes hashtags ‘unnecessary’ by improving engagement and ad targeting on its own.
“X’s user-recommendation system is now powered by xAI, significantly optimising both the experience for users and performance for advertisers. Hashtags in ads are no longer necessary with xAI’s Grok integration in the X platform. This enables more effective engagement and improved measurement,” a spokesperson for X told Campaign.
The crackdown marks a sharp pivot for Elon Musk, the same man who, in late 2023, told advertisers threatening to pull spend from X to “go f*** yourself.”
At the time, Musk dismissed concerns over brand safety and claimed he wouldn’t be “blackmailed” by marketers. But with 90 per cent of X’s revenue still tied to advertising, and pressure mounting to improve user experience, the platform is now embracing cleaner, more controlled ad formats.
For advertisers, it’s a clear signal: Musk may still champion free speech, but on X, presentation, and more importantly payment, matters more than ever.
