Elon Musk has reached an agreement to acquire Twitter for approximately $44 billion, the social media company announced on Monday (April 25).
The Tesla CEO, who is also the richest person in the world, has previously noted that he wants to buy Twitter because he thought it wasn’t a “free speech” platform. He says it needs to be turned into a private company to build trust with users and better serve what he calls the “social imperative” of free speech.
In recent weeks, Musk has shared a number of proposed changes he hopes to see implemented at the company, from relaxing content restrictions — like the rules that banned former President Donald Trump’s account — to removing fake and automated accounts from Twitter .
“Freedom of expression is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital marketplace where important things for the future of mankind are discussed,” Musk said in a statement included in the press release, which cites the 44 billion, according to CNBC dollar deal was announced. “I also want to make Twitter better than ever by improving the product with new features, open-sourcing algorithms to increase trust, defeat spam bots, and authenticate everyone. Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the user community to unlock it.”
Following news of the deal, a number of music stars – including Scooter Braun, Kevin Jonas, Questlove, Ice Cube and more – took to the platform to share their thoughts. See the reactions below.
Do we now get the option to edit tweet?
— Kevin Jonas (@kevinjonas) April 25, 2022
Hello Elon 👋 @elonmusk
— Scott “Scooter” Braun (@scooterbraun) April 25, 2022
Good. What now
– This (@questlove) April 25, 2022
Hmmm, maybe that means this is starting an “Ahmir is actually enjoying life” like 2004 Friendster days ago…..or even creepier 98 Okayplayer days ago.
– This (@questlove) April 25, 2022
I already have https://t.co/4vIQHogSM9
– This (@questlove) April 25, 2022
Free at last! @elonmusk take off my shadow ban homie…
— Ice Cube (@icecube) April 25, 2022
It would be kinda goofy if Musk bought Twitter and just shut it down… lol
— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) April 25, 2022
Oh shit… I called it this morning…. ‘The voltage increases!’ Elon Musk acquires Twitter for around $44 billion – The Washington Post https://t.co/IumDYVa1cw
— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) April 25, 2022
If getting off social media ruined your life… you really need to recalibrate your priorities. Just say.
— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) April 25, 2022
Ignore the drama, pay attention to https://t.co/eoi2tGkYeP instead
— Ellie Goulding (@elliegoulding) April 25, 2022
Comments are closed.