X is continuing to promote its efforts to improve transparency and advertiser confidence ahead of next week’s Brand & AI Safety Summit in New York.
The latest comments come from Michael O’Herlihy, X’s newly appointed Head of Safety, and Monique Pintarelli, the company’s Head of Global Advertising. Both are highlighting how greater visibility into X’s recommendation systems could benefit advertisers.
Why This Matters
O’Herlihy, who recently returned to X after previously working at Twitter, said he’ll use his appearance at the November 10 summit to explain why open-source recommendation systems and visible platform controls matter for users and advertisers.
“When the ranking code that shapes what people see can be examined, and when people can see any labels that limit their own reach, users and brands have a practical way to check claims for themselves,” he wrote.
Experts React
Pintarelli reinforced that message, specifically connecting transparency to advertising performance.
“For advertisers, clearer ranking factors make shifts in adjacency or reach easier to understand and strengthen campaign control,” she wrote. “Paired with independent measurement already available on X, it gives brands greater certainty about where their ads appear.”
Our Take
There’s an interesting advertising argument emerging here.
Transparency into recommendation algorithms isn’t just about brand safety. It’s also about helping advertisers understand how the platform works and how to be successful on it.
For brands, greater visibility into ranking factors could help explain why ads appear alongside certain content, why reach fluctuates and how campaigns can be optimized. That has implications for both brand suitability and performance.
Of course, access to ranking code doesn’t automatically translate into actionable insights for advertisers. But if X can turn that transparency into practical controls and clearer reporting, it could give brands another reason to invest in the platform.
