X now uses artificial intelligence to rank posts in users’ Following feeds, ending the platform’s chronological display option, according to a report by Social Media Today.

The platform deployed its Grok AI system to sort Following feed content based on predicted engagement and relevance, owner Elon Musk announced last week. “Posts of people you follow are now ranked by Grok,” Musk stated in a post. “You can still access unfiltered chronological if you want.”

The system ranks content using past interactions, topic engagement, and signals from followed accounts. X activated the feature automatically for all users in the latest app version.

Platform Shifts Default Feed Setting

X now defaults users to the For You algorithmic feed when they open the app, regardless of which feed they previously viewed. The change represents a push toward algorithm-powered content discovery over user-selected chronological feeds.

The platform indicates the impact may be minimal for users following fewer than 200 accounts.

User Response Centers on Live Content Concerns

Some users expressed concern about the effects on X’s real-time news function. “X needs to always be the live microblogging hub of the world,” posted creator Rob Perez, who covers NBA games. “Twitter/X’s live utility was ALWAYS the business’ cornerstone. As long as it had this market cornered, it would survive its growing pains.”

A recent study found that slight algorithmic boosts of posts expressing anti-democratic attitudes and partisan animosity on X produced “a large change in their unfavorable feelings towards the other side” among both Democrat and Republican supporters. 

The findings indicate algorithmic changes can significantly affect user responses, according to Social Media Today’s analysis of the research.

X’s user base has declined since Musk’s acquisition, though the platform maintains influence in political and news discussions.

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