Tweet removal tool Semiphemeral stops working due to API changes

Semiphemeral, one of the most used tools to delete old tweets, is no longer working. According to the creator, this is due to limitations in the API, but also because of the new policy on X, the former Twitter.

Semiphemeral can no longer be used via the website. The creator, Micah Lee, says in a tweet that the service stops. According to him, this has to do with changes to the Twitter API. These were adjusted at the beginning of this year. The new prices quickly make using the API very expensive, forcing many bots and tools to stop. Lee also cites ‘spreading hate speech, science denial, crypto scams and more’ as the reason that Twitter is no longer a ‘livable environment’ for the tool.

For years, Semiphemeral was one of the most used tools to delete large amounts of tweets. Users could link their accounts and then instantly delete all their tweets within a certain period of time. This was also possible with retweets, likes and DMs. X, formerly Twitter, never had such functionality, allowing bulk deletion of old tweets only via third-party tools. Of these, Semiphemeral was the best known.

The tool was used by 43,049 users, of which the creator blocked 248 because they ‘consistently liked tweets from fascists’. In recent years, Semiphemeral has deleted 45.4 million tweets, 26.2 million retweets, 69.7 million likes and 24.6 million DMs, its creator says. The source code of the tool is now on GitHubbut users who want to host an alternative version are expected to pay dearly with the API prices.