Trump Media launches real-time Truth Social feed for paying customers

Trump Media & Technology Group is turning Truth Social posts into a real-time data product for paying customers. For retail investors, the move matters because President Donald Trump often posts policy updates on Truth Social before they appear elsewhere, and those posts can move stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities.

The company said Thursday it is launching an application programming interface, or API, that will give customers “licensed, real-time access” to posts from the highest-ranking accounts on Truth Social. An API is a software connection that lets one system pull data from another automatically, instead of relying on a person to refresh an app or website.

Trump Media did not name the president in its announcement. Kevin McGurn, the company’s interim chief executive officer, said in the release that “markets already move on Truth Social posts,” according to CNBC.

Why Wall Street cares about speed

Social media data feeds are already common across financial markets. CNBC reported that hedge funds and other Wall Street firms use similar services from other social networks to receive posts quickly, search historical archives and build trading systems that react to sentiment or fresh information.

The key feature is speed. A low-latency feed means data reaches a customer with very little delay. In markets, even a short delay can matter when a post includes information about tariffs, military action, regulation or other policy decisions that may affect publicly traded companies.

Trump’s account, @realDonaldTrump, is the largest on Truth Social, according to a 2025 survey by SEO.ai cited by CNBC. The account had 12.9 million followers on Thursday morning. CNBC reported that Trump regularly posts official communications first on the platform, including updates on decisions involving the war with Iran and tariffs.

Ethics criticism follows the launch

Trump’s family is the largest shareholder in Trump Media, the publicly traded company that operates Truth Social. Securities and Exchange Commission filings show roughly 114 million shares, now equal to 42% of Trump Media, were issued to Trump, according to CNBC. After winning the presidency, Trump transferred those shares to a revocable trust in the name of Donald Trump Jr.

Virginia Canter, an ethics attorney with Democracy Defenders Fund, criticized the new product in comments to CNBC. “It’s a huge conflict of interest,” Canter said, arguing that Trump has a public duty to communicate official information broadly and is doing so through a private channel tied to his financial interests.

Canter also told CNBC that Truth Social has “become the de facto presidential press room.” Democracy Defenders Fund is a nonprofit group that has criticized the Trump administration, CNBC reported.

The White House did not respond to CNBC’s email about the announcement, according to the network. CNBC said the White House forwarded the message to the Trump Organization, which declined to comment. Trump Media did not immediately respond to CNBC’s follow-up questions.

DJT shares remain far below debut levels

Truth Social launched in 2021 after X and Facebook banned Trump’s accounts following the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Trump has since been reinstated on both platforms.

Trump Media became public through a merger with a blank-check company, also known as a special purpose acquisition company, and began trading on Nasdaq under the ticker DJT on March 26, 2024. Its shares were down 84% from that date through Thursday morning, according to FactSet data cited by CNBC.

The API gives Trump Media another way to monetize Truth Social beyond standard social media activity. It also puts the company closer to the real-time information business, where the value comes from fast, licensed access to posts that traders, newsrooms and data systems may want to see the moment they appear.

This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.