The social platform X, formerly known as Twitter, recently discontinued support for using NFTs as profile images. This feature, introduced under the company's previous leadership in January 2022, allowed premium service users of Twitter Blue to use non-fungible tokens issued on Ethereum as profile avatars. Verified NFT avatars were distinguished by their hexagonal shape instead of the usual round one.

The cancellation of this feature has elicited reactions from the crypto community. Jesse Powell, co-founder of the Kraken exchange, commented on it as a step backward for the NFT industry, pointing to a decrease in utility and the underutilization of NFT potential, such as proof of ownership and community building.

Elon Musk, who became the largest shareholder of Twitter in April 2022 and subsequently acquired the company for $44 billion, initially criticized the integration of NFT avatars, considering it an inefficient use of resources. After acquiring Twitter, he rebranded it, changing its name to X and abandoning the blue bird symbol.

In the context of social networks, Meta (formerly Facebook) also experimented with integrating NFTs into Instagram and Facebook, but in March 2023, it shut down all NFT-related initiatives.

The discontinuation of NFT avatar support on the X platform reflects a changing approach to the use of non-fungible tokens in social networks. This decision has sparked discussions about the future of NFTs in the digital space and how companies might integrate blockchain technologies into their platforms.