Trends on X: what people copy, and whether you should¶
Patterns that spread on X. Each entry says what it is, why people do it, and whether it fits an indie dev. Labels follow tips-and-tricks.md: Code, Help, Practice.
Add a new trend as a new ## section with the date you saw it. Remove it when it fades.
Community pixel PFPs (matching avatars)¶
Seen: 2026-10-11, in a Space where the host, co-host and five speakers all used the same pixel avatar style.
What it is. PFP means "profile picture". In this trend a whole group uses avatars drawn in one style: a pixel-art face in side profile, a different hat, glasses or hoodie on each, and a flat colored circle behind. The style comes from CryptoPunks (24×24 pixel NFTs, 2017) and the many collections that copied it. Inside crypto it's called a PFP NFT or pixel PFP. When a team does it together, people call it matching PFPs or community PFPs.
Why people do it - Practice · Tribe signal. Same style = same team. In a Space or a reply thread, viewers can see who's together. - Practice · Faceless but memorable. Crypto has a culture of anonymous accounts. A pixel face is a brand that isn't your real face. - Practice · Reads at small sizes. Flat colors and thick pixels still read at 48 px in the timeline. A shrunk photo often doesn't. - Practice · Status. If it's a real NFT from an expensive collection, the avatar shows you own it.
Does it get more followers? No evidence we can cite. What it gives you is a consistent look and a sense of belonging, not proven reach. Test it yourself (below).
Fit for indie devs - Good fit if you build in public with a team or a small group of founders and want to look like one "crew". - Weak fit if your audience doesn't come from crypto or tech, or if your face is the brand. People trust a real face more for one-person products. That's Practice, so test it. - Help · Changing your profile photo can remove the Premium checkmark until X reviews the account again (About X Premium). Pick the avatar once and keep it.
Make your own (no NFT needed)
1. Draw one base face on a 24×24 or 32×32 canvas. Piskel is free in the browser;
Aseprite is paid.
2. Draw swappable parts on separate layers: hat, glasses, hair, hoodie, mask.
3. Give each person their own combination and their own background color.
4. Export, then scale up to 400×400 with nearest-neighbor so the pixels stay sharp. Smooth scaling blurs them.
5. AI image tools work for one-offs. Prompt idea: pixel art avatar, 24x24 style, side profile, baseball cap,
sunglasses, flat solid circular background, limited palette. It's hard to keep a group consistent this way.
For a group, layers work better.
Copyright. Don't copy traits from CryptoPunks or any collection someone owns. If you want ready-made art, use a collection released as CC0 (public domain), like Nouns. Check each collection's license before you use it.
How to test it - Change only the avatar, nothing else, for 2–4 weeks. Log profile visits and follow rate from X Analytics each week in weekly-numbers. - Compare with the same number of weeks before the change. Small accounts have noisy numbers, so only trust a large, steady difference.