X Algorithm has been fully open-sourced, no longer a black box.

According to the most hardcore logic disclosed by Elon Musk in January 2026: Likes are vanity, retweets are nuclear bombs.

If you still believe in “daily updates” and don’t understand the permutations of the 20x weight factors, you are being systematically wiped out at 100 times the speed.

We are in the most transparent yet most brutal “computing power game” era in X’s history. When open-source code every 4 weeks becomes the norm, mediocre creators will become completely invisible due to their inability to penetrate the “funnel” model.

The brutal filtering at the bottom of the funnel: X’s recommendation system no longer relies on “number of followers,” but on SimClusters (similarity clustering). The system divides the entire network into 145,000 fine-grained communities. If you are an AI account but post a reflection about travel, the algorithm will mark it as “domain noise.” Demotion isn’t because you write poorly, but because you cause “cognitive confusion” in the algorithm. Verticality is the only criterion to survive in 2026.

Power hierarchy of the weight scoring card: In the latest code, the weights of interaction behaviors have shown a sharp divide. Retweet (20x) is the sole engine of viral spread, Bookmark (10x) determines whether your content has “long-term retention” value. The weight of Likes (Like) is only 1x, making it the cheapest social currency. Your content structure must shift from “seeking likes” to “seeking saves” and “seeking retweets.” If it doesn’t trigger the desire to retweet, the system sees this tweet as garbage.

Dwell Time: The lifeline for long tweets: Starting in 2025, Dwell Time becomes the core of weight. If a user clicks on your long article and stays for more than 2 minutes, the system will judge this content as having extremely high “information density.” That’s why we need deep logical reasoning and high-quality pure text formatting. Let users “get lost” in your words for two minutes—more valuable than getting a thousand half-hearted likes.

Avoid “traffic traps”: Do not directly include external links in your main tweets; this is a traffic suicide. The algorithm’s initial exposure suppression of external links can be as high as 50%-70%. Clever architects hide links in the first reply or guide users to your Profile before clicking. Remember, the essence of X is to keep users on the platform; any behavior attempting to divert traffic will be punished.

Survival rules for 2026: The Sandwich Structure: Top-tier tweets must have extremely strong visual guidance. Hook must create cognitive contrast within 3 seconds. Body must provide enough practical value to make people want to bookmark. CTA must clearly direct to retweet, triggering that 20x weight gain.

“Personification” shift of the algorithm: In 2026, the algorithm no longer just recognizes keywords; it begins to infer the influencer’s value based on the quality of comments in reply sections. High-quality long replies (13.5x weight) can attract more precise traffic than the main post. This means you should spend 50% of your time adding value in others’ comment sections.

Structural adjustment of social assets: Premium weighting has become a ticket to entry, but in an era where everyone has a “Blue Check,” genuine personality traits (Identity) have become a scarce resource. The algorithm is trying to assign higher weights to accounts with “unique expressive styles” to combat content homogenization generated by AI.

Utilizing the cost of silence: Use the Bookmark mechanism. When users save your tweet, they subconsciously complete a “value recognition.” In 2026, the number of bookmarks directly determines the potential for secondary viral explosion within 48 hours.