X, the platform once known as Twitter and owned by Elon Musk, has introduced a baffling new ad format that is raising eyebrows among its users. This latest development marks a departure from the platform’s usual transparency standards, leaving many questioning the company’s motives.

The rollout of these unconventional ads also sheds light on X’s ongoing struggle to attract advertisers to its platform. Some X users have already encountered these enigmatic ads in their For You feed, a type of content they had not previously seen. What sets these new X ads apart is that they do not allow users to like or retweet the ad posts. Moreover, this novel ad format provides no information about who is behind the ad or even that it’s an advertisement at all.

It’s worth noting that this mysterious ad format has been witnessed by numerous users across X, showcasing a variety of different ads presented in this peculiar new format. These ads typically consist of written text, a photo, and a fabricated avatar designed to mimic the appearance of a regular tweet.

Examples of these unconventional ads include headlines like “This Seems Unbelievable, But Happens in Dubai Everyday,” which redirects users to a third-party content mill website brimming with its own ads. Other ad content includes catchy phrases like “These Incredibly Cool Gadgets That Are Going To Sell Out This Year. Action Now!” and “If you suffer from ringing ears (Tinnitus) you’re going to love this recent breakthrough.“

Users who have encountered these X ads report that clicking anywhere within the ad, including the fake avatar, opens a new window leading to a third-party website. There is no X post to interact with, and no user profile associated with the ad to explore.

The absence of key features in this new ad format reveals much about the state of advertising on Musk’s social media platform. Notably, the usual three-dotted icon button found in the upper right-hand corner of X posts and ads, which allows users to report a post or mute and block an account, is conspicuously missing. This leaves users with no means to report or block these unconventional ads that are being served to them.

One of the most significant departures from X’s standard ads is the complete lack of an X account associated with these new ads, at least not one visible to the user. There are no usernames or handles present in these ads. Although an avatar is displayed to make the ad blend in with other feed posts, the image does not represent a profile picture. Instead, the avatar appears to be a cropped version of the photo included within the ad itself.

Moreover, without a display name or handle, it remains unclear to users who exactly is behind these ads. The new ad format also fails to disclose its status as an advertisement. There is no “promoted” or “ad” label anywhere to be found on these ad types, setting them apart from most other websites that display chumbox clickbait advertising. Notably, X also refrains from disclosing the ad network associated with these ads, adding to the opacity surrounding their origin.

This introduction of the new ad format coincides with another decision made by X, one that further reduces transparency on the platform. Recently, under the directive of Elon Musk himself, X removed headlines and contextual information from shared links on the platform. Instead of displaying the article title or other relevant information, users now see only an embedded header image with the domain name as a watermark-like overlay in the corner of the photo. Musk explained that he made this change because he was dissatisfied with the previous appearance of link previews.

These developments leave X users and observers questioning the platform’s commitment to transparency and the impact these changes may have on the user experience and the advertising landscape on the platform.