Elon Musk Acquires Twitter for $44 Billion! Twitter Employees: I'm Resigning

US$44 billion—final bid accepted.

On April 25, Twitter announced that its board of directors had unanimously approved Elon Musk's acquisition offer, under which the company will be acquired at $54.20 per share.(Approximately USD 44 billion, RMB 288 billion), entirely sold to Musk.

From becoming a prominent Twitter user to emerging as a major shareholder and then the company's CEO, Elon Musk achieved all of this within just one month.

According to Twitter’s Q4 earnings report, it has 217 million monthly active users.(Monetizable Daily Active Users, MDAU)，It is undoubtedly one of the most influential global social media platforms.

As the world's richest individual known for his distinctive, even outspoken style, often described as the very embodiment of 'capital,' what will Elon Musk do with Twitter after acquiring it, and what impact will this have?

Some people love it, while others dislike it.

"As a company, Twitter has always been a source of deep concern and my greatest regret because it had become shackled by Wall Street and the advertising model. Now that Musk has reclaimed it from Wall Street, that's the first step in the right direction," tweeted Jack Dorsey, Twitter's co-founder, former CEO, and close friend of Musk, voicing his stance.

A key condition of Musk's acquisition offer is the privatization of Twitter; delisting would enable him to implement sweeping reforms, transforming Twitter into a "bastion of free speech."

"In principle, I believe Twitter should be owned and operated by no one; it ought to be a protocol-level public good, not a corporate entity. To solve this problem, Musk is the only solution I trust. I believe his mission is to shine the light of conscience." Dorsey boldly championed Musk.

Sriram Krishnan, who previously led Twitter's core consumer products team, tweeted: "This is one of the most important services in the world, and it needs a radical overhaul—Musk may be the best person for the job."

An employee who claims to be a Twitter product manager also tweeted that the acquisition could boost hiring: "You'd be surprised how many people have reached out to me today, saying they'd definitely consider applying for a job if Musk takes over."

Some people even joked about the new boss, demanding, "Let's all get a Tesla!"

Elon Musk's ability to rally support is evident, but it's clear that the high-profile—and often enigmatic—billionaire CEO fails to win everyone over, leaving internal employees riddled with doubts.

"This is truly a troubling and highly uncertain time," said Edward Perez, Twitter's head of social health product management—whose team focuses on public conversation and speech—following the announcement of the deal."Most of us firmly believe that Twitter is more than just a technology platform—it bears significant social responsibility—and we hope our new leadership understands this."

Some also reported that within minutes of the acquisition announcement, employees began planning to resign in company-wide internal groups.

Employees' main concerns about Musk boil down to two points: first, his advocacy of an absolutist view of free speech is excessively extreme and runs counter to Twitter's commitment to fostering healthy discourse; second, his approach could have a negative impact on the working environment for the company's minority groups.

"We believe one of Musk's primary motivations may be to influence Twitter's moderation policies, which he has frequently criticized as being overly strict," Jefferies analyst Brent Hill wrote in an investor report. Bank of America analyst Justin Post also stated in a report to clients that Musk's potential involvement could lead to changes in content policy.

Elon Musk's online browsing history is riddled with controversy, as his comments have repeatedly sparked disputes and drawn regulatory scrutiny.

For example, in 2018, as Tesla's stock price continued to fall under short-selling pressure, Musk suddenly announced via a tweet that he planned to take Tesla private, even specifying a takeover price of $420. Following the tweet, Tesla's stock price surged immediately, inflicting heavy losses on short sellers. However, subsequent investigations revealed that Musk had not actually secured funding for the privatization. It is clearly against regulatory disclosure requirements for a listed company's CEO to rashly announce major transaction news on social media. As a result, the SEC launched an investigation into Musk.

Moreover, as a super KOL with over 84 million followers, Musk's public endorsements of cryptocurrencies such as Dogecoin and Bitcoin are directly linked to market confidence and currency value. In January last year, the bio of Musk's Twitter account was changed to "bitcoin." Following this change, Bitcoin surged by $800 in the short term, with its price once reaching $32,758 per coin.

In addition, in 2018, Musk was sued for suggesting that a Thai cave diver who had criticized him was a pedophile. Last October, a federal jury found that Tesla had allowed a former Black employee to be exposed to a racially hostile work environment and had failed to take reasonable measures.

Outside of Twitter, there is also opposition to the acquisition.

"This deal poses a threat to democracy: billionaires like Elon Musk are playing by a different set of rules, wielding power in their own self-interest. We need to impose a wealth tax and enforce stringent regulations to hold big corporations accountable."U.S. Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren stated.

"Each side has its own reasons." But the deal is now finalized and expected to close within the year, so attention has shifted to Musk's next move.

Elon Musk's "Disorderly Expansion"

According to sources cited by The Wall Street Journal, even Twitter's current CEO, Parag Agrawal, has stated that once Musk takes over the company,"We have no idea which direction the company will take."

We can glean some clues from Elon Musk's frequent tweets.

On the one hand, there are new features, including a more cautious content moderation system, tweet editing, longer tweets, real-name verification for human users, the elimination of paid trolls and bots, the addition of verification badges for paying users, and the open-sourcing of Twitter's algorithm and its publication on GitHub, among others.

On the other hand, there is the company's business model.

In 2021, Twitter reported revenue of $5.08 billion, up 37% year over year, with advertising accounting for more than 80% of that total. However, Elon Musk has made it clear that Twitter should shift toward a business model that relies more heavily on subscriptions and paid features. Currently, the $2.99-per-month Twitter Blue subscription includes the "undo tweet" feature; Musk believes more premium, paid features should be added, such as an ad-free experience. That said, given his decision to "borrow money" to acquire Twitter, it is unlikely that Musk will immediately abandon the advertising business.

In addition, no final decision has yet been made regarding changes in the company's management.CEO Parag Agrawal has been in office for less than six months, and it remains to be seen whether Musk, who is busy managing Tesla, SpaceX, and other companies, will have the time and energy to participate in operations.

Agrawal's current total compensation is $30.4 million, most of which is in stock. According to estimates by research firm Equilar, if he were to be terminated within one year following a change in control, based on his annual salary, the early vesting of his stock options, a per-share offer price of $54.20 from Musk as a benchmark, and an assessment of Twitter's most recent proxy statement, Agrawal could receive approximately $42 million.

Musk has also proposed layoffs, the closure of Twitter's San Francisco headquarters, and waiving board compensation. He says the latter alone could save roughly $3 million per year.

Boosted by the acquisition news, Twitter's stock price climbed, closing slightly higher at $51.7 on Monday and posting a 21.19% gain year-to-date. Despite its long-standing underperformance in the broader market, Twitter has now outpaced both other tech stocks and the overall market. The company is scheduled to release its Q1 earnings report on Thursday and has announced that it will not hold a conference call with analysts that day.

Despite consistently underwhelming stock performance, Twitter has long been one of the world's largest social platforms—and a highly coveted acquisition target for major corporations and institutional investors. Reports have indicated that companies such as Salesforce, Google, and the activist hedge fund Elliott Management all once expressed interest in acquiring the platform; however, it was ultimately Elon Musk who secured the deal.

Starting in March, he quietly built up a stake, then launched a high-profile public-relations campaign via Twitter to position himself as a major shareholder. In April, he made a tender offer, secured debt financing from financial institutions to lock in the necessary capital, and today officially announced the completion of the acquisition—all in a lightning-fast turnaround.

Musk initially faced resistance from Twitter, which said it would activate a "poison pill" defense—but that move now appears more like a tactic to buy time for negotiations and to assert its negotiating leverage. According to the Wall Street Journal, last Friday Musk held private meetings with several Twitter shareholders to outline the merits of his proposal, while reiterating that the company's board must make a clear "accept or reject" decision.

Following this, Twitter's stance shifted.

Having already wrought seismic transformations in payments, new-energy vehicles, commercial spaceflight, and other sectors, Elon Musk is now set to reshape social media. The future of Twitter may prove even more dramatic: will it become a "bastion of freedom" or a "one-man show"? One thing is certain: Musk has already embarked on a path of "unrestrained expansion."

Author | Chen Wenqi

$Twitter (Delisted) (TWTR.US)$

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