X ads ‘Paid Partnership’ labels for creators so they can ditch the hashtags

Source: TechCrunch

Social network X announced on Monday a new Paid Partnership label that creators can apply to their posts to indicate they’re advertisements. The feature aims to improve authenticity, letting fans know when a product recommendation is an original sentiment versus a paid sponsorship, while also complying with regulations that require ads on social media to be clearly labeled.

Similar tags have existed for years on other platforms, such as Instagram, after the U.S. Federal Trade Commission warned influencers in 2017 to “clearly and conspicuously disclose” sponsored content. Instagram later expanded its Partnership Ads to let creators get paid for written testimonials shared as comments on a brand’s posts (TechCrunch, 2025).

How the label works

• Creators can toggle a new “content disclose” setting when composing a post.
• The Paid Partnership label appears directly below the post’s content.
• The label can be added retroactively if the creator forgets to apply it initially.

According to X’s head of product, Nikita Bier, the feature lets creators be transparent with their followers while complying with federal regulations.

“While we want to encourage people to build their businesses on X, undisclosed promotions hurt the integrity of the product and lead people to distrust the content they read on X.” — Nikita Bier, March 1 2026
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Context for creators on X

Creators on X previously had to rely on hashtags like #paidpartnership and #ad to label sponsored content. The new label removes the need for such hashtags, which have become somewhat passé.

X has been courting the creator class for some time, offering:

• Payouts for viral content
• Ad‑revenue sharing programs
• Creator subscriptions

(See related coverage: TechCrunch, 2023, 2024, 2023, 2022).

Despite these efforts, X has struggled to attract creators who often prefer Instagram, YouTube, and other platforms.

Additional authenticity measures

Last week X announced that its API will no longer allow programmatic replies unless the original author mentioned the replying user or quoted them. This change aims to curb LLM‑generated spam and prevent shady brands from using AI‑generated replies to masquerade as genuine customer feedback on sponsored content.