X has moved decisively to shut down a growing corner of crypto’s attention economy. The social media platform has revoked API access for applications that reward users for posting, a change that effectively blocks so-called “InfoFi” projects that pay users to generate engagement.
The decision, confirmed by X’s head of product Nikita Bier, has already triggered sharp market reactions and forced major crypto analytics startups to abandon core products.
The policy shift targets a model that had become widespread on Crypto Twitter: platforms tracking posts, replies, and impressions, then distributing tokens or points to users who amplified projects. While promoters framed this as a way to democratize information flow, X says the incentives produced the opposite effect.
“The model created a tremendous amount of AI slop and reply spam,” Bier said, adding that the changes should quickly improve content quality once automated bots stop getting paid.
According to Bier, programmatic access has already been revoked for affected developers, leaving little room for negotiation. The message was blunt: paying users to post is no longer compatible with X’s platform rules.
Key Takeaways
- X has revoked API access for apps that financially reward users for posting, effectively shutting down InfoFi-style engagement incentive models on the platform.
- InfoFi-related tokens such as KAITO, Cookie DAO, and others sold off sharply as investors priced in the loss of their primary distribution and growth mechanism.
- Kaito has confirmed it will sunset its Yaps product and incentivized leaderboards, pivoting instead to a new offering called Kaito Studio.
- The policy change was driven by concerns over widespread AI-generated spam and bot-driven engagement flooding Crypto Twitter.
- The move signals a broader shift away from tokenized attention rewards toward more controlled, platform-compliant crypto partnerships on X.
InfoFi Tokens Take an Immediate Hit
Markets responded within hours. Tokens tied to InfoFi platforms sold off sharply as traders priced in the loss of their main growth engine. Kaito, Cookie DAO, BubbleMaps, Loud, Arbus, and other projects tied to engagement incentives all fell as the news spread.
For many of these platforms, X was not just a distribution channel but the entire business model. Their value proposition depended on access to real-time social data and the ability to reward behavior at scale. Without API access, that loop breaks.
Kaito, the most prominent player in the sector, moved quickly to confirm a strategic retreat. Founder Yu Hu announced that the company will sunset Yaps, its flagship incentivized posting product, along with its public leaderboards. In its place, Kaito plans to pivot toward a new offering called Kaito Studio, though details remain limited.
The fallout has not been limited to product changes. The Kaito Yapper community, which reportedly numbered around 157,000 members, was banned on X following the policy enforcement.
The $KAITO token dropped roughly 17% after the announcement, according to on-chain analysts, compounding losses that began earlier this year.
Cookie, another InfoFi platform, also confirmed it would shut down Snaps, its creator campaign system, after discussions with X about API and usage policies. The company said it remains an Enterprise API customer but acknowledged that reward-based posting programs can no longer operate under the revised rules.
A Model Already Under Pressure
While the ban landed abruptly, the InfoFi model had been showing cracks for months. Kaito’s KAITO token launch in early 2025 sparked backlash after users discovered that accumulated Yaps points translated into far smaller token allocations than expected.
Complaints quickly spread about insider-heavy tokenomics and rapid selling by early recipients, which pushed prices down and eroded trust.
Those tensions worsened as generative AI tools became more accessible. Because engagement systems rewarded volume and velocity, bot networks and low-quality content farms increasingly dominated leaderboards. Long threads, generic takes, and copy-paste replies crowded out original research and thoughtful commentary.
For many long-time users, Crypto Twitter became harder to read. Replies filled with templated praise, emoji spam, and automated summaries often drowned out meaningful discussion. The financial incentive to post, critics argued, warped behavior in predictable ways.
X’s crackdown formalizes that critique into policy.
Bier said the platform will no longer allow apps that pay users to post, citing a surge in “AI slop & reply spam,” and confirmed that terminated developers could explore migrating to rival platforms like Threads and Bluesky.
Relief for Crypto Twitter, Uncertainty for Builders
Reaction from traders and creators has been mixed but largely supportive of the move. Many welcomed the end of incentive farming, arguing that it hollowed out organic discourse and rewarded noise over insight. For them, the ban represents a chance to reset norms and restore credibility to crypto conversations on X.
For InfoFi builders, however, the shift is existential. These projects were designed around monetizing attention on a single platform, with tokens acting as both reward and retention mechanism. Removing the ability to pay for posts forces a fundamental rethink of how value is created and captured.
Some teams may attempt to pivot toward compliant partnerships, analytics tools, or off-platform products. Others may fade entirely as token prices fall and users lose interest. The speed of the market reaction suggests little patience for experiments that no longer align with X’s rules.
What is clear is that the attention economy on X is changing. Tokenized rewards for posting are out. Curated, platform-approved integrations are in. Whether that leads to higher-quality crypto discourse or simply shifts incentive games elsewhere remains to be seen.
For now, X has drawn a firm line. The era of getting paid to tweet about crypto projects, at least on its platform, is effectively over.
