Twitter confirms support for crypto, NFTs, announces slew of updates

Social media giant Twitter is planning an array of changes for its platform in the coming months. The company announced a slew of changes today, which range from giving users more control over the tweets they see and Spaces they join, to taking payments in Bitcoin. Here’s everything Twitter announced.

NFTs and cryptocurrencies

Confirming rumours that have been heard over the past few months, the company said that it will soon support NFT authentication for creators, the company announced today. While Twitter is still “exploring” the feature, it said that artists will be able to connect their crypto wallets and take payments directly through Twitter from other users. The platform will also allow its users to take tips in cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin, or through crypto wallet apps.

Further, the company said that it is exploring ways that this badge of approval can be displayed and wants to give users ways to get more information and insights into the NFTs they view or purchase. “It’s a way to support creators making this art with a stamp to demonstrate authenticity,” the company said in a call with reporters today.

Expanding Twitter Spaces

Twitter’s Spaces platform, which is a voice-based social network that runs within the Twitter app, is also getting updates. It will allow users to record and replace Spaces conversations after they have happened, and the company is also working on ways to improve discovery for Spaces conversations. Ticketed Spaces, a monetization tool for these conversations, will have more options for setting prices and audience sizes.

The company said it is also testing “Communities”, which sounds similar to Facebook’s Groups feature. It will allow users to connect with people with similar interests and the feature is being tested on the platform right now.

Monetization for more users

Additionally, the Super Follows and Tip Jar features on Twitter will be rolling out to all of its users soon. Super Follows allows users to provide subscription-based content on Twitter, while the Tip Jar feature allows them to receive one-time payments from followers, using third-party payments tools. 

Tip Jar will be available to all Twitter users using iOS devices from 10.30pm IST today, and supports Indian payment gateways like RazorPay. The company will also be adding a platform called Strike to this, which allows users to take payments via Bitcoin. It will also come to Android soon.

More control on conversations

Further, Twitter said it is experimenting with a feature to give people a “heads up” when they are about to join a heated discussion on Spaces. The company said this will give users context about the “conversation vibe” before they join the room. 

Twitter also started labeling bot accounts clearly recently. Today, the company said it will start labeling more accounts, based on their type. This includes businesses, brands and memorialized accounts.

For users who are frequently mentioned by others in their tweets, Twitter will be adding a feature that allows users to remove themselves from such conversations. Lastly, Word filters will allow users to filter out “unwanted speech” in their replies. Users will be able to choose specific words and emojis, which will be blocked on their replies. The feature is in the concept phase right now and the company said it will keep users informed about how it evolves.