Elon Musk explains bizarre Twitter view cap rule as he tells users to 'go outside'

Elon Musk has announced a bizarre new Twitter feature limiting the number of posts each user can see per day, and has since explained the logic behind the unexpected move

Elon Musk has explained his decision to cap the number of posts each Twitter account can view per day.

Users of the popular social network complained they were unable to load tweets yesterday afternoon (Saturday, July 1) as they were told they had exceeded their "rate limit" or the site "couldn't retrieve tweets".

While many first believed the phenomenon was caused by a glitch, the controversial Twitter boss revealed he had introduced temporary caps on the amount of content people can consume on the platform on purpose.

READ MORE: Twitter chaos worldwide as Elon Musk imposes daily Tweet reading limit on all users

"Verified accounts are limited to reading 6000 posts/day; Unverified accounts to 600 posts/day; New unverified accounts to 300/day," the Tesla tycoon posted to Twitter.

Musk, who infamously took over the platform in October 2022, initially said the number of posts different types of accounts could see had been limited in response to "extreme levels of data scraping and system manipulation".

But it now seems there may be another reason why the tech mogul introduced the restrictions.

Taking to the social network, Musk retweeted a post by a parody account of himself that read: "The reason I set a 'View Limit' is because we are all Twitter addicts and need to go outside.

"I’m doing a good deed for the world here. Also, that’s another view you just used."

Ever a fan of a cryptic Tweet, Musk later added: "You awake from a deep trance, step away from the phone to see your friends & family."

When Musk first made the announcement, it was unclear whether the content caps were here to stay.

However, he has since revealed plans to revise how many posts different accounts will be allowed to view per day – meaning some sort of curb on your Twitter scrolling may be in place for the foreseeable future.

"Rate limits increasing soon to 8000 for verified, 800 for unverified & 400 for new unverified," he initially said, before quickly changing his mind.

"Now to 10k, 1k & 0.5k."

This is not the first time Musk has come under fire since taking over the platform – the billionaire was previously slammed after swathes of employees lost their jobs.

One user remarked: "It has everything to do with him, he’s the one who got rid of all the staff. I’ve been on Twitter since 2009 and there have been more issues since he took over than all the years before combined."

"Can’t see anything on timeline or on my profile. Just the words 'you have exceeded the Twitter rate'. Elon you better sort this out before I come there!! This issue has been happening since 2pm," another angry social networker added.

Musk also oversaw the rollout of the controversial Twitter Blue feature, which requires users to pay for a blue tick – previously used to mark official noteworthy accounts – and unlock premium features.

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