Elon Musk wants Twitter now, actually
The Future. Elon Musk is reversing course and offering (once again) to buy Twitter… at the same price he offered from the start. If Twitter accepts, it could be Musk’s by next week, giving the reluctant owner the rule of the roost. Once under his control, the first orders of business may be cutting costs across the board… which could include (according to texts unveiled in discovery) everything from dramatically cutting headcount to taking Twitter private and restructuring the company.
Flying in circles
Musk is trying to be the M. Night Shyamalan of tech M&A.
- Bloomberg reports that after reneging on his buyout plan, months of bashing both the platform and its executives, and railing about an infestation of fake accounts, Musk has decided to re-offer his planned $44 billion for Twitter.
- If Twitter accepts the deal, it could be under Musk’s control as early as next week since the company’s board and antitrust regulators have already signed off on it.
Wall Street was ecstatic at the news, lifting Twitter’s stock price 18%.
Next for the nest
Musk’s change of heart comes right before the case between him, and Twitter was scheduled to go to trial on October 17. There, Musk had the burden to prove that the alleged bot issues and surfaced security lapses created a “material adverse effect” on Musk’s potential acquisition and should therefore be scrapped.
It turns out, Musk’s legal team didn’t see much hope in Musk prevailing in court, which would force the richest man in the world to follow through on the ultimate impulse purchase. Musk is not someone known for taking an L, so he may just be accepting the inevitable… on his terms.
Or, according to Musk (on Twitter, of course), this was all part of the plan, and “buying Twitter is an accelerant to creating X, the everything app.” Guess we’ll see.