X, formerly known as Twitter, may reintroduce a downvote feature for posts, a feature that was previously tested in 2021 before Elon Musk acquired the social network. During the initial experiment, Twitter tested both upvoting and downvoting buttons, similar to Reddit’s platform where users can vote on posts. Recent code references discovered in the X iOS app hint that the company is exploring the possibility of adding downvotes specifically for replies to enhance their ranking system.
The code references were first spotted by reverse engineer Aaron Perris, also known as @aaronp613 on X, who frequently uncovers new app features before they are officially launched. Perris revealed that these code references were found in the latest iOS app update on Tuesday, as reported by TechCrunch.
While the presence of new features in an app’s code doesn’t guarantee their public release, companies, especially social media platforms, routinely test new features internally before deciding their fate.
In this instance, at least one X engineer and the owner Elon Musk have acknowledged the potential addition of downvotes. According to Jay Baxter, a senior staff machine learning engineer at X working on Community Notes, incorporating a negative signal could be beneficial, similar to how it enhances X’s crowdsourced fact-checking feature.
Baxter explains that aggregating negative signals alone could result in a “hivemind like Reddit.” To refine the system, he suggests downranking posts with negative ratings only from individuals who typically disagree, as mentioned on X.
This approach mirrors the methodology used in X’s Community Notes, where consensus among conflicting parties is required before fact-checks are made public.
Although Baxter didn’t explicitly confirm the development of downvotes, he emphasized that Community Notes relies on private ratings to avoid groupthink and ensures anonymity of rating data for 48 hours before making them public.
Elon Musk also expressed agreement with a one-word comment in the thread: “True.”
Implementing a consensus-building algorithm to rank posts could help X feature better replies in lengthy discussions and encourage other platforms to adopt similar tools. X’s Community Notes feature has already inspired YouTube to experiment with its own version called Notes, promoting consensus-based fact-checking while maintaining user-driven moderation.
While X explores potential changes like downvotes, other startups like Bluesky are innovating moderation methods, such as composable moderation, allowing users to tailor moderation services to align with their preferences.
It seems that downvotes are not the only innovation on the horizon for X. Another finding by Perris circulating on X reveals a user interface that conceals engagement buttons by default, making room for gesture-based menus for action access.
