Elon Musk tweeted that his $44 billion purchase of Twitter is “temporarily on hold pending details supporting calculation that spam/fake accounts do indeed represent less than 5% of users.” In his tweet, Musk linked to a Reuters story that quoted a company filing saying that spam and fake accounts make up less than 5% of the social platform’s user base.
Twitter deal temporarily on hold pending details supporting calculation that spam/fake accounts do indeed represent less than 5% of users https://t.co/Y2t0QMuuyn
Musk later tweeted that he remained committed to the acquisition.
Musk’s missive is the latest twist in a monthlong saga that has unfolded tweet by tweet. The most recent episode began in March this year when Musk trolled Twitter on Twitter. He questioned the company’s commitment to free speech, raised the possibility of “de facto” bias in its algorithm, and mused about the need for another such platform.
It soon emerged that Musk had quietly become Twitter’s largest shareholder. On April 14, Musk announced his intention to buy Twitter outright in a deal worth $44 billion; the company’s board accepted his offer 10 days later on April 25.
Since then, the company has been roiled by Muskian drama as the billionaire has trolled the company’s top leadership, accused them of left-wing bias, and said that he would allow former president Donald Trump back on the platform.
Yesterday two top Twitter executives, one of whom was on paternity leave, tweeted that they had been fired by CEO Parag Agrawal.
Interrupting my paternity leave to share some final @twitter-related news: I’m leaving the company after over 7 years.
In a company memo announcing their departures, Agrawal said, “It’s critical to have the right leaders at the right time,” adding that “as a company, we did not hit intermediate milestones that enable confidence in these goals,” according to the New York Times.
UPDATE
Updated to reflect Musk's subsequent tweet that he remained committed to the Twitter acquisition.