X Launches Beta Testing for X Money Payment Service Through William Shatner Charity Auction

X has begun beta testing its long-awaited payments service, X Money, using an unconventional approach that involves actor William Shatner and charitable donations, according to information shared on the platform this week.

The social media company, owned by Elon Musk, started offering select users invites to X Money after previously testing the service internally among employees. Rather than distributing invites through traditional channels, X partnered with Shatner to auction off beta access in exchange for $1,000 donations to the actor’s charity supporting children’s and veterans’ organizations.

Shatner, known for his role in “Star Trek,” shared details about the X Money service on the platform Monday, posting screenshots of the payment interface. Musk amplified the announcement by resharing Shatner’s posts, writing simply “X Money” on one and “This will be big” on another user’s post about the service.

The auction offered 42 invites to X Money’s beta program, according to Shatner’s posts. The number appears to reference “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy,” where 42 represents the answer to the meaning of life. Musk reinforced this theme by sending Shatner $42 through the X Money app, as shown in a screenshot the actor posted.

Winners of the auction will see a link to X Money appear in the X app below the Premium subscription link, according to the announcement. Beta users will also receive metal X Money debit cards featuring their X usernames, powered by Visa, which handles the person-to-person payment functionality.

Screenshots shared by Shatner reveal X Money’s interface includes three main tabs: Account, Rewards, and Activity. The service offers options for deposits, money transfers, and payment requests. Users can set up direct deposit and earn annual percentage yields up to 6.00%, according to the posted images.

Cross River Bank, an FDIC member institution, holds user deposits with insurance coverage up to $250,000 per individual, based on information shown in Shatner’s screenshots. While X Payments itself is not FDIC-insured, the company has secured money transmitter licenses in over 40 U.S. states.

During X’s public all-hands meeting in February, Musk told staff the service would enter limited external beta testing within one to two months before expanding worldwide to all users. The X Money launch represents a key component of Musk’s vision to transform X into an “everything app” that combines social networking with messaging, payments, creator content, subscriptions, and video services.

The payment service could potentially launch as a standalone app, similar to X’s recent testing of X Chat as a separate messaging application. This approach would position X Money to compete directly with established payment platforms including Venmo, PayPal, and Cash App.

Musk’s involvement in digital payments spans decades, beginning with his founding of X.com in 1999, an online financial services startup that later merged into the company that became PayPal. After acquiring Twitter in October 2022, Musk renamed the platform X in July 2023, paying tribute to his early entrepreneurial ventures.

The beta launch through Shatner’s charity auction demonstrates X’s unconventional marketing approach while generating funds for charitable causes. The strategy combines celebrity endorsement with philanthropic giving to build early adoption for the payment service.

As X continues expanding beyond social media, the X Money beta represents a significant step toward Musk’s broader ambitions for the platform. The service’s success could determine whether X achieves its goal of becoming a comprehensive digital ecosystem that rivals established tech giants in multiple service categories.