On May 31, Nikita Bier, Head of Product at X, directly refuted a long-standing social media myth by replying to the Vatican's official account @Pontifex, stating that embedding a link in a post does not reduce its reach. The exchange began when @Pontifex shared an excerpt from Pope Leo XIV's encyclical 'Magnifica Humanitas' with a link to the full text on vatican.va. A user advised the Pope to place the URL in a threaded reply to avoid algorithmic penalties, prompting Bier's intervention. As Head of Product overseeing X's ranking and recommendation systems, Bier's correction carries official weight. The belief that off-platform links suppress reach has persisted for years, leading many social media teams to adopt workarounds like reply-threading. Bier joined X in mid-2025 after creating viral apps TBH and Gas. His tenure has been eventful, including claims of crypto content suppression, a paused creator monetization overhaul, and recent previews of a crypto product. The encyclical, signed on May 15, is a 42,300-word document on artificial intelligence, arguing that technological progress without ethical development yields no genuine human betterment. Bier's brief reply may serve as a small footnote to that broader discussion.

Key facts

• X Head of Product Nikita Bier debunked link deboosting myth on May 31.
• He directly corrected the Vatican's official account @Pontifex.
• Bier stated that links in posts do not reduce algorithmic reach.
• The myth has circulated for years, prompting workarounds like reply-threading.
• Bier oversees X's ranking and recommendation systems.