"I just killed it": Musk ditches "Official" label hours after launch

Elon Musk said Wednesday that he has "killed" the "Official" label, which was given to some verified accounts earlier in the morning.

Why it matters: The new "Official" label was Musk's answer to verify an account's legitimacy outside of the blue checkmark, which can be bought through a Twitter Blue subscription for $8 a month.

Driving the news: When a Twitter user noted his "official" badge was gone, Musk replied: "I just killed it." He later noted that the blue checkmark "will be the great leveler."

• "Please note that Twitter will do lots of dumb things in coming months," Musk tweeted on Wednesday. "We will keep what works & change what doesn’t."

Flashback: Twitter launched the "official" badge for "select accounts" that are verified as part of its new $8 monthly premium subscription service, which "does not include ID verification," a company executive said Tuesday.

• Axios had been labeled as one of those "official" accounts.

The big picture: Twitter early stage products executive Esther Crawford tweeted that the new Twitter Blue service would be an "opt-in, paid subscription that offers a blue checkmark and access to select features."

• The new "Official" label would have replaced the blue checkmark and applied to a select number of "government accounts, commercial companies, business partners, major media outlets, publishers and some public figures," according to Crawford.

Our thought bubble, via Axios' Ina Fried: Twitter attempted to address the issue it created when it announced it would sell blue checkmarks.

• Many governments and other entities might not choose or be able to pay for verification. Also, verifying important entities benefits all Twitter users, not just account holders

Go deeper: Twitter launching monthly subscription that includes blue checkmark

Editor's note: This story was updated to reflect that Musk removed Twitter's new "Official" label hours after launching it.