The news: X has rolled out a "Paid Partnership" label that creators can attach to sponsored posts, replacing the platform's previous reliance on #ad hashtags and self-written disclosures.

• Creators activate the label through a flag icon in the post composer or retroactively via the post menu's "Add content disclosure" option, per TechCrunch.
• X also launched a separate "Made with AI" label alongside the partnership tag.

Why it matters: X was the last major social platform without a native paid partnership disclosure tool.

• Instagram introduced its "Paid partnership with" tag in 2017, TikTok added branded content toggles in 2022, and YouTube has required paid promotion disclosures for years.
• X's previous policy required creators to "include clear and conspicuous language" for commercial partnerships, per Social Media Today, but enforcement was inconsistent and compliance often amounted to a buried #ad hashtag.
• The update also opens X to crypto-related sponsored content, so long as posts carry the paid partnership tag.

The feature arrives as creator-driven advertising grows rapidly. US influencer marketing spending will reach $12.4 billion in 2026, and creators will earn 58.8% of their revenues from sponsored content, per our forecast. Yet transparency remains a friction point. Only 38% of adults ages 18 to 34 prefer creators to use platform disclosure tools like #ad or paid partnership tags to signal sponsorships, compared with 51% who prefer creators to explain why they partnered with a brand, per Bazaarvoice. That preference gap widens with age: Just 17% of adults 55 and older favor platform disclosure tools.