In yet another shake-up, social media giant Twitter says that only verified accounts will appear in its recommendation feed going forward.
Twitter chief executive officer (CEO) Elon Musk announced the change on the social media platform, saying that only verified accounts will now show up in the “For You” section of the site.
Previously, “For You” recommendations showed the accounts of any Twitter users, whether they are verified or not.
Musk said in a tweet that the latest change is “…the only realistic way to address advanced AI bot swarms taking over.”
Musk also said that only verified users will be able to vote in polls moving forward.
Since buying Twitter last October, Musk has sought to change the way the company verifies accounts.
Twitter used to verify users as authentic with a blue check mark. This process was free and applied to celebrities, journalists, government officials and corporations.
Musk introduced a subscription service last year called “Twitter Blue” that allows a user to pay $8 U.S. each month to be verified and obtain a blue check mark.
Twitter said it plans to wind down its “legacy verified program” by April 1 of this year, effectively forcing people with free legacy checkmarks to sign up for a Twitter Blue subscription.
Musk has been trying to generate revenue at Twitter, with paid verifications being a key focus.
Musk told employees last week that Twitter is now valued at about $20 billion U.S., less than half the $44 billion U.S. he paid for the company last fall and then took private.
However, Musk has told Twitter staff that he sees a path to a $200 billion U.S. valuation for Twitter within 10 years.
