2026-01-18 11:28:19

Platform X awards a $1 million prize for the best article, with the founder personally sharing and reposting. The logic behind this move is far more complex than it appears on the surface.

Currently, breaking news worldwide is first posted on X, with unparalleled speed. But where's the problem? The interpretive authority still lies with traditional media like Bloomberg and WSJ. As a result, X has become a platform for breaking news, and users finish reading explosive headlines only to turn to traditional media for in-depth analysis. This situation is clearly unsustainable.

Therefore, this $1 million is essentially aimed at cultivating a group of "native serious opinion leaders on X." The goal is very clear: to regain full pricing power over news, from first release to interpretation, and take control of the entire process.

Looking deeper, connecting this strategy with X's plans to develop payment services and obtain financial licenses makes the logic even clearer. Who is most likely to use X Pay? Certainly high-net-worth users making decisions based on in-depth content. Upgrading the content system is a prerequisite for expanding financial services. With authoritative voices and in-depth discussions present, the quality of the user base is completely different.

To put it simply, $1 million may not buy many top-tier articles, but it secures the attention and expectations of all serious creators. This business is incredibly cost-effective.

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ProposalManiac

· 10h ago

This is a classic example of incentive-compatible mechanism design. On the surface, it looks like spending money to attract authors, but in reality, it's about building barriers to discourse. Packaging the prerequisites of payment services as content operations—brilliant.

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GasFeeSobber

· 10h ago

Talking thoroughly, but still a bit naive.

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MechanicalMartel

· 10h ago

Really, this 1 million is the foundation for mining Bloomberg and WSJ.

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LayerZeroJunkie

· 10h ago

Damn, this move is really ruthless, it's not just about throwing money around on the surface. This guy knows what's up; content power struggle is the real core. From leaks to analysis, mastering the entire chain, advanced level.

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PumpingCroissant

· 10h ago

The "King of Roll" tactic, just trying to bring the paid knowledge gameplay to X.

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SchrodingerPrivateKey

· 10h ago

Really, I see through it. This is about paving the way for a financial ecosystem. Stubbornly turning X from an information source into a decision-making center, the scale of the game is huge. This guy is playing this set: Content → Trust → Payment, links in a chain. A million looks like a lot, but what you're buying is the heart of the entire creator ecosystem. Very shrewd. To be honest, if X Pay really takes off, the retention rate of high-net-worth users won't be a dream. The logical chain is connected, Bloomberg and those folks should be nervous.

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