An X employee tried the Grok AI, asking the chatbot if it’s fine to use hashtags on X/Twitter. The straight-up answer was no. It likened hashtags on X “as useful as a screen door on a submarine.” It suggested the user let their content go down the drain using hashtags if they wanted to. Grok quipped, “It’s not like X has evolved into a place where the algorithm punishes you for being too eager to be seen.” It further added
In the grand scheme of digital obscurity, hashtags are your ticket to nowhere.”
See Also: The Evolution Of The Hashtag
However, Grok gives contradictory answers to varying users depending upon the context of the question, stating that the jury is mixed on the subject. Nevertheless, X/Twitter’s billionaire boss pitched in, reposting the tweet, claiming that systems at the Twitter HQs no longer need hashtags. He suggested the users on X to
Please stop using hashtags. They look ugly.”
grok weighs in on using hashtags on 𝕏 💀 pic.twitter.com/YO2ofSpkVe
— Dan (@KettlebellDan) December 17, 2024
“If your aim is to increase visibility within a community or tap into trending topics, a few relevant hashtags might still be beneficial.”
— Paola Poot (@PootDibou) December 17, 2024
Please stop using hashtags. The system doesn’t need them anymore and they look ugly.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 17, 2024
See Also: Elon Musk Might Be Planning To Get Rid Of Hashtags From Platform X; Everything We Know So Far
Hashtag, or pound sign, as a discoverability feature was first invented by American product designer Chris Messina in 2007, who decided not to patent. He proposed the same in his 2007 tweet. The metadata tag was adopted in Twitter and Tumblr and soon was proliferated across several other mediums, including Facebook, Instagram and more. Some of the more renowned hashtags on the platform that brought about a cultural revolution include the #MeToo movement. Twitter also introduced the ‘Trending Topic’ in 2010 in sync with the hashtags. Sometimes certain offensive hashtags are deactivated on platforms like Instagram to limit abuse.
See Also: AR Rahman Uses Bizzare Hashtag In His Divorce Announcement; Internet Says ‘Who Creates Hashtag For This Situation?’
See Also: Instagram Censors #VaginalCancer Hashtag, Allows #VaginalSteaming
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