Some modifications to interfaces and prompts, such as vibrant buttons encouraging subscriptions within applications, may be somewhat irritating yet relatively simple to overlook. However, certain features are so intrusive that they provoke a strong desire to discard one’s device. X’s recent initiative aimed at encouraging users to promote their posts falls squarely into this latter category. In the past 24 hours, an increasing number of users have reported the sudden appearance of a mysterious hand gesturing towards the “promote” button while they were composing a post. This development has frustrated users across the platform.
With Halloween approaching, some speculate that this could be a prank intended to unsettle users, although X has not confirmed this theory. Even those users who are inclined to promote a post and invest money may find themselves deterred upon encountering the hand. “I just went to write a tweet and a massive hand popped up pointing to the promote button 😵💫” tweeted Tom Warren.
“Why is there a man pointing on my screen?!?!” questioned Molly O’Shea in her own tweet.
“What the hell is this? Jesus Christ, please never do this again, Twitter,” expressed Matt Slotnick.
“I was going to post and this arm came out of nowhere to point at the promote button. LOL WHAT,” tweeted Dak.
“WTF @elonmusk, if I wanted jump scares I would’ve watched a horror movie instead. P.S. this hand popped out of nowhere and conveniently when the words ‘engagement farming’ are in the tweet,” remarked Ershad Kaleebullah.
Dylan Abruscato, president of the TBPN podcast, commented that this engagement tactic was the “most Nikita-coded thing I’ve ever seen,” referencing the growth strategies associated with Nikita Bier, X’s former head of product. “I was just about to post when this huge, in-your-face arm popped up pointing at the promote button (yes, this is a real screenshot). The most Nikita coded thing I’ve ever seen. So obstructive, yet so effective,” he tweeted.
Bier departed from the platform in August after nearly a year in charge. On Monday, Bier’s former superior and ex-head of product for Snap and Discord, Peter Sellis, announced that he has assumed the role of product chief at X. “I’m joining the team at @X to lead Product. I am a huge believer in @SpaceX’s mission to extend human consciousness to the stars, so it’s time to make shitposting multiplanetary. X is the best way to find out what’s happening in the world right now and talk about it,” he tweeted.
It remains uncertain whether the hand feature is a result of Sellis’s influence. We have reached out to X for a statement and will update our report should we receive a response.
