It may be only a new tweet to turn around. But Elon Musk still assured him, this Wednesday, December 21: he will leave the head of the social network. After several weeks of trying to make – and unmake – the platform’s strategy, Musk himself wrote, “I’m going to find someone crazy enough to succeed me.” He would remain, however, the owner of Twitter bought last October for 44 billion dollars. The entrepreneur intends to lead the “software and servers” teams there.
The decision does not come out of nowhere. In a tweet, again, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX had asked his community on Monday if he should “retire from management”. Some 17 million people responded; 57% voted in favor of his abdication. “I will stick to the results of this poll,” Musk warned. promised thing…
Self-proclaimed “ayatollah of freedom of expression”, since his takeover, Elon Musk has continued to blow hot and cold at the head of Twitter. Even in his terms of resignation. On Tuesday, he suggested that the vote for his departure had been manipulated by fake automated accounts, following the publication of a poll by the HarrisX institute giving him, on the contrary, acclaimed to remain at the head of the network. Unlike a vote, under a tweet, a poll is based on statistical methods that ensure its representativeness.
The UN, Europe and finance against Musk
The unpredictable Musk ultimately stuck to this wild poll. A method he has appreciated since taking office. Rehabilitate the account of Donald Trump and a series of virulent far-right profiles? A tweet-vote. Continue to ostracize journalists from Twitter from New York Times or CNN investigating him? Another tweet-vote.
This arbitrary management has nevertheless triggered the anger of international leaders and actors. Recently, the European Commission warned Elon Musk of potential “sanctions” due to the threat he poses to media freedom. The UN also reported “serious concerns” about its all-personal use of moderation, ranging from the arbitrary suspension of journalists, to the removal of warning messages about disinformation content related to Covid-19.
Latest controversial decision to date? Prohibit links to competing social media content. An initiative that caused an outcry from the father of the blue bird, Jack Dorsey, as from the investor Paul Graham, a close friend of Elon Musk. This time the entrepreneur quickly backpedaled. Are the tensions becoming too much for him? General Motors, Mondelez international, Volkswagen… Since the takeover of Twitter by the engineer-star, a host of advertisers have announced their withdrawal from the platform, worried about its future. Enough to drop Twitter’s advertising revenue and plunged the social network (as well as its owner) into doubt. This also explains the eagerness of the businessman about paid subscriptions, or his revival of the “business of anger”.
Above all, at the same time, the car manufacturer Tesla – another company owned by Musk – is considered to be increasingly neglected by its investors. Musk sold billions of Tesla shares to fund social network; another 3.6 billion recently. On the stock market, Tesla has lost almost 60% of its value since the announcement of the takeover of the platform in the spring. And despite Musk’s initial inclinations, the stock continues to fall. Shareholder anger is expected to grow. Until his effective withdrawal from Twitter?