If you’ve been curious about why your X feed displays certain types of content, Elon Musk has the answer. In a post on Monday, the billionaire provided insights into how the platform’s algorithm works.
The X algorithm follows a straightforward principle: “If you interact with content, you want to see more of it.” This means that your engagement—such as likes, comments, and shares—directly affects what the algorithm chooses to show you.
Mr. Musk explained a crucial aspect of the algorithm—content sharing. “One of the key signals is when you forward X posts to friends; the system assumes you really like that content because forwarding requires effort,” he noted. As a result, when users share a post, the algorithm views this as a strong endorsement and frequently surfaces similar content in their feed.
Mr. Musk did, however, also admit that this reasoning had a serious weakness. He emphasized that, especially in cases where a user’s motivation is negative, the algorithm is unable to discern the true purpose of their interactions. “Unfortunately, if you forwarded the content to friends because you were outraged by it, we currently lack the ability to recognize that,” he admitted.
In a follow-up post, Elon Musk voiced his support for “freedom of speech.” “I like content that supports freedom of speech,” he stated, adding, “Long live X. Long live freedom of speech.”
He further commented, “I’ll cage fight the dictator in Brazil if necessary,” referring to Brazil’s Chief Justice Alexandre de Moraes, whom Musk has previously called a “tyrant” and “dictator.”
The conflict between Musk and de Moraes started in April when Musk announced plans to unsuspend accounts linked to the 2023 Brazilian Congress attack in Brasilia, despite a court order to keep them blocked.
In response, de Moraes launched an investigation into Musk, accusing him of spreading false information, obstructing justice, and inciting criminal activities. He also directed Brazilian internet service providers to block access to X, threatened daily fines for users using VPNs to bypass the ban, and froze the finances of Musk’s company, Starlink, in Brazil.
Musk retaliated by accusing de Moraes of undermining democracy and has used X to criticize the judge’s actions.
