X Awards $1 Million Prize to User With History of Racist, Anti-Immigrant Posts

Elon Musk's platform faces backlash for honoring controversial content creator

Published on Feb. 4, 2026

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Elon Musk's social media platform X has awarded its $1 million prize for 'high-value, high-impact' writing to a user with a history of making racist and anti-immigrant posts. The user, known as @beaverd, has published content slamming multiculturalism, promoting conspiracy theories, and making derogatory statements about minority groups, sparking outrage from X users.

Why it matters

This case highlights concerns about Musk's leadership of X and the platform's content moderation policies, as it appears to be rewarding users who promote hateful and extremist views. It also raises questions about Musk's own rhetoric on immigration and race, which has drawn criticism in the past.

The details

The winning article was written by @beaverd, an 'affiliate' of the crypto casino Toshi Bet. In the past year, the user's posts have included slamming multiculturalism, promoting a conspiracy theory about a 'jew weather machine', and making derogatory statements about Somali immigrants and women's suffrage. Other controversial posts have namedropped a Minneapolis resident whose fatal shooting ignited nationwide protests against the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.

  • The $1 million prize was awarded on February 4, 2026.

The players

@beaverd

An X user with a history of making racist and anti-immigrant posts who was awarded a $1 million prize by the platform.

Elon Musk

The CEO of X who has faced criticism for his own rhetoric on immigration and race, and for the platform's decision to award a major prize to a user with a history of hateful content.

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What they’re saying

“Great job Elon, what an excellent user to promote. Surely this will make the Europeans back off their investigation into rampant antisemitism and hate speech on this site!”

— Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, Senior Fellow at the American Immigration Council (X)

What’s next

The decision to award the $1 million prize to @beaverd is likely to face continued scrutiny and criticism, potentially leading to further investigations into X's content moderation practices and Musk's leadership.

The takeaway

This incident highlights the ongoing challenges social media platforms face in balancing free speech principles with the need to curb the spread of hateful and extremist content. It also raises concerns about the influence of powerful individuals like Musk in shaping the online discourse and the potential consequences of rewarding users who promote divisive and harmful views.