Musk polls Twitter users on whether he should resign
For free real-time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox, sign up for our breaking news emails
Sign up to our free emails for breaking news
Billionaire Elon Musk tweeted for the first time since losing an online poll asking users if he should step down as Twitter CEO, telling them he would “abide by the results”.
The poll attracted more than 17 million voters in just 12 hours, with 57.5% voting “Yes”.
The Tesla boss last night responded “interestingly” to a suggestion by Kim Dotcom, founder of the once-popular file-sharing website Megaupload, that the survey results were skewed by fake accounts.
Another user suggested that “blue subscribers should be the only ones allowed to vote on policy-related polls.” Mr Musk responded by saying: “Good point. Twitter will make this change.” Twitter Blue is a paid subscription that allows users to purchase a verification badge for their accounts.
Their survey comes after the latest uproar over a policy banning users from linking to certain rival social media websites, including Facebook, Instagram and Mastodon.
Twitter then reversed the policy within hours. “Going forward, there will be a vote for major political changes. My apologies. It won’t happen again,” he added.
key points
Show latest update 1671563890
Tesla’s stock price continues its decline in 2022
Tesla’s share price fell another 6% on Tuesday after a number of brokerages cut their price targets for the electric vehicle maker’s stock.
This came in the wake of Elon Musk’s $44 billion purchase of Twitter and the chaos that has engulfed the social media platform ever since.
Tesla shares hit a more than two-year low of $140.86 on Tuesday, Reuters reported.
(Getty Images)
Graeme Massie December 20, 2022 7:18 p.m
1671554342
Are Elon Musk’s Twitter Antics Hurting Tesla?
Tesla investors are reportedly furious at what they see as a major distraction for Musk. The electric carmaker is currently experiencing its biggest share selloff since going public 12 years ago (see chart below), and the CEO’s Twitter antics are seen as a big factor in that 600,000 slide millions of dollars.
We heard from Antoine Argouges, founder of ethical investment group Tulipshare:
Elon Musk’s decision to ask Twitter users to vote on whether he should remain CEO is the latest in a series of controversial decisions that is undermining his reputation and credibility with [Tesla] shareholders
his is the latest move in a long series of actions that demonstrate his volatility and how his preoccupation with Twitter is eroding confidence among his shareholders. Tesla’s market value has plummeted since Musk’s takeover of Twitter, and its performance shows how Tesla’s board has failed to hold Musk accountable — it’s time for shareholders to act.
With the support of retail investors, we call for Elon Musk’s salary to be linked to his performance on environmental, social and governance metrics. The Tesla Board and its shareholders must take greater responsibility for adopting and meeting more ambitious ESG commitments, and retail investors have a vital role to play in holding them accountable. Through shareholder activism, we are calling for Musk’s pay to be linked to ESG, to demand greater governance, as well as for the environment and workers’ rights across the economy.
Antoine Argouges
Anthony Cuthbertson December 20, 2022 4:39 p.m
1671550836
Elon Musk shares latest ‘Twitter Files’ claims.
Chief Twit, at least for now, is tweeting again.
Ignoring the current speculation about who might replace him at the social media company, Musk is returning to his other favorite topic of recent days: Twitter files.
“The government paid Twitter millions of dollars to censor the public’s information,” he wrote, retweeting ‘Part 7’ of the Twitter files.
“Other social media companies too,” he added, “not just Twitter.”
Anthony Cuthbertson December 20, 2022 3:40 p.m
1671547800
Elon Musk is “actively searching” for Twitter’s new CEO
According to sources cited by CNBC, Elon Musk is “actively searching” for a new Twitter CEO.
There’s no word on who a potential successor could be, though several figures have floated his name, including rapper Snoop Dogg and computer scientist Lex Fridman.
“The question isn’t finding a CEO, the question is finding a CEO who can keep Twitter alive,” Musk tweeted Sunday night.
Anthony Cuthbertson December 20, 2022 2:50 p.m
1671546249
Tesla shares have seen their worst sell-off since 2010
Tesla shares have taken a beating since Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter, with some of the electric carmaker’s top shareholders lamenting that its CEO was distracted by Twitter.
Since its peak in November 2021, Tesla shares are down more than 62 percent. This is Tesla’s worst sale since the firm went public in 2010.
Musk addressed the stock’s plunge last Friday, blaming the $600 billion loss in value on forces beyond his control. “Tesla is executing better than ever!” he tweeted. “We don’t control the Federal Reserve. That’s the real problem here.”
(Google/Nasdaq)
Anthony Cuthbertson December 20, 2022 2:24 p.m
1671543000
Musk seems to fuel the idea that bots played a role in defeating Twitter polls
Mr Musk on Monday night appeared to fuel a theory that bots were to blame for his defeat in a poll asking whether he should remain Twitter’s chief executive.
Earlier Monday, an account with the username Wall Street Silver tweeted a side-by-side comparison of the poll on the question of reinstating former President Donald Trump’s account with the poll on the question of the current leadership of Mr. Musk’s Twitter.
The previous poll had approximately 15 million votes and 836,000 likes, while the later poll had almost 15 million votes and only 312,000 likes. This led Wall Street Silver to ask, “Did bots do the Elon poll yesterday?”
Mr Musk replied: “Interesting.” It’s not clear why there would be any relationship between voting in a Twitter poll and liking a tweet, two different actions that don’t seem to have any direct relationship.
Abe Asher December 20, 2022 1:30 p.m
1671541246
Musk says ‘there is no successor’
Even if Elon Musk steps down as head of Twitter, choosing a successor may not be so simple.
“No one wants the job that can actually keep Twitter alive,” he tweeted overnight. “There is no successor.”
One of those stepping forward to offer his services is Lex Fridman, an AI researcher, computer scientist and popular podcast host.
“Let me run Twitter for a bit,” he tweeted at Musk. “Without pay. All inclusive. Focus on great engineering and increase the amount of love in the world. Just offering my help in the unlikely event that it’s helpful.”
Musk replied: “You must really like pain. One catch: You have to invest your life savings in Twitter and it’s been on the fast track to bankruptcy since May. Do you still want the job? “
Alisha Rahaman SarkarDecember 20, 2022 1:00 p.m
1671539400
Twitter launches new Twitter Blue for Business feature
Twitter announced Monday that Mr. Musk as CEO, but a new Twitter Blue for Business feature that “allows businesses to distinguish their brands and key employees on Twitter.”
Businesses will now be distinguished by square profile pictures and gold checkmarks, as opposed to circular pictures and blue checkmarks for other accounts. Existing verified companies have already joined the new program and now have gold verification marks and square images.
Twitter is currently testing the program with a select number of companies and plans to fully launch it next year.
Abe Asher December 20, 2022 12:30 p.m
1671537646
Voices | Is Elon Musk the new Liz Truss?
Will Elon Musk step down as CEO of Twitter? I have no idea. I might have by the time this is posted, or I might not. Maybe it will have made it illegal to use the letter “a” by then, or banned non-binary people from the app altogether. Who knows.
Musk tweeted a poll asking users if they thought he should resign and those users, your very own columnist included, just told him, at the time of writing, where to stick it. It’s not clear if anything will change.
What is certain, however, is that the chaos will continue in one form or another for the foreseeable future.
In the age of Elon Musk, there are no quiet news weeks on Twitter, writes Marie Le Conte.
Alisha Rahaman SarkarDecember 20, 2022 12:00 p.m
1671535800
Twitter’s new policy favors paying subscribers
John Besey summarizes Monday night’s announcement of Mr. Musk that only paying Twitter subscribers will be able to vote on future policy-related issues.
The announcement came shortly after a majority of Twitter users voted for Musk to step down from his role at the company in an open poll on Sunday.
Abe Asher December 20, 2022 11:30 am