A few seconds longer to think about that hot take.
Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
The evidence is mounting that Twitter will be adding an undo tweet feature, but that those who want it will have to pay: app researcher Jane Manchun Wong has discovered a subscription screen tied to the feature. The ability to take back tweets has also shown up on a survey asking Twitter users about features theyd be willing to pay for, as well as in the code for the app, and CNET received confirmation today from Twitter that it is, in fact, being tested.
When it will become widely available is unknown, but its understandable why Twitter could be considering reserving the feature for its potential subscription service: whats a better lure than a keep yourself out of trouble button?
For its part, Twitter hasn’t said if the feature will be limited to paying customers its possible its not far enough along in development for that decision to have been made yet.
Its also worth noting that the buttons design suggests that it works similarly to the undo send button in Gmail, where the site simply waits a few seconds before actually sending the message. In other words, its not really the edit button that people clamor for, but it could at least get you some of the way to that functionality (albeit minus the part where someone else can tell you that youve made a mistake).
If Twitter is open to suggestions for the undo button, heres one: have it pop up if someone blasts through the offensive tweet warning, giving them a few more seconds to reconsider. Whether that would fix the general atmosphere on Twitter is hard to say, but its probably at least worth a shot, right?