Hollywood Legend William Shatner Reveals X Money Features During Limited Beta Launch
Actor William Shatner, famous for his role in Star Trek, provided glimpses into the functionality of Elon Musk's X Money through shared screenshots.
Elon Musk's newly developed payment application X Money has entered a limited external beta testing phase this week, with preliminary screenshots revealing that participants will have access to cashback rewards and yield earnings on their deposits.
Among the beta testers selected was celebrated Hollywood performer William Shatner, renowned for his portrayal of Captain Kirk in the classic Star Trek television series, who received an invitation to take part in the beta program.
Multiple screenshots posted by Shatner reveal that individuals using X Money will have the opportunity to receive cashback rewards on select card transactions and generate 6% annual percentage yield on their deposited funds.
An additional screenshot demonstrates that user deposits are maintained by Cross River Bank, which holds membership in the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, with insurance coverage extending up to $250,000 per individual account holder.
X Money represents a component of Musk's comprehensive "everything app" strategy
On Feb. 11, Musk announced that X Money would transition to external beta testing prior to its worldwide release to X platform users. The service had been undergoing closed beta evaluation since at least May 2025.
The potential incorporation of cryptocurrency payment options into X Money continues to remain unclear, however.
X Money forms part of Musk's expansive vision to transform X into a comprehensive everything app, encompassing payments and private messaging alongside AI chatbot capabilities through Grok, content creator features, identity verification and additional services.
"This is intended to be the place where all money is. The central source of all monetary transactions," Musk said in February, calling it a "game changer."
X and Shatner collaborate to broaden beta testing access
Shatner has subsequently utilized the $42 transferred to him by Musk to generate funds for charitable purposes. With authorization from X, Shatner conducted an auction offering 42 X Money beta access invitations for $1,000 per invite.
Each of the 42 successful auction participants would be granted a $25 welcome gift card provided by X and would additionally receive $1 that was originally sent to Shatner by Musk.
Following the completion of the initial auction, Shatner and X initiated a second wave of invitations, auctioning an additional 166 beta access invites, likewise priced at $1,000.
To qualify for participation, users must hold US residency status, be over 18 years of age and possess an active X account that remains in "good standing."
Individuals who complete the registration process will gain eligibility to receive a physical metal X Money debit card featuring their username, issued through X's partnership with Visa, Shatner pointed out.
Cryptocurrency integration remains absent
Musk's well-documented fondness for Dogecoin (DOGE) has generated conjecture within the cryptocurrency community regarding the potential inclusion of the memecoin in X's future developments, but no substantive evidence has materialized, much less any actual integration into X Money.
X Money represents a comeback to the payments industry for Musk, who originally established X.com during the late 1990s before the company merged with another entity to eventually become PayPal.
Throughout recent years, X has obtained money transmitter licenses across more than 40 US states and completed registration with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to enable peer-to-peer payment functionality on the platform.