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Elon Musk and Twitter- How Elon Musk ended up buying Twitter?

On Monday, Elon Musk in a roughly 44 billion deal that has the potential to expand the billionaire's business empire and put the world's richest man in charge of one of the world's most influential social networks.T

he deal, which will take the company private, caps off a whirlwind period in which the Tesla and SpaceX CEO became one of Twitter's largest shareholders, offered and turned down a seat on its board and bid to buy the company all in less than a month. Under the terms of the deal, shareholders will receive above 54.20 in cash for each share of Twitter stock they own, matching Musk's original offer and marking a 38 per cent premium over the stock price the day before Musk revealed his stake in the company.

Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated, Musk said that in his statement. Twitter has tremendous potential-I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.

The Twitter Board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon's proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing," Twitter independent board chair Bret Taylor said in a statement, calling the deal with the best path forward for Twitter's stockholders. Twitter stock was approximate 6 per cent following the announcement of the deal, hovering around of 51.84, just shy of the offer price. The deal is pending approval from shareholders and regulators.

What Musk means for Twitter

Musk is both a high-profile Twitter user and controversial one. Musk has approximate 83 million followers on the platform, which he has used over the years for everything from sharing memes and discussing his companies to insulting politicians, spreading misleading claims about Covid-19 and making offensive remarks about the transgender community. Musk has repeatedly stressed in recent days that his goal is to bolster free speech on the platform and work to "unlock" Twitter's "extraordinary potential.

In his statement Monday, Musk said he wants to "make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with latest features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans." Separately, Musk said in a tweet Monday that he hopes even my worst critic’s remains on Twitter, because that is what free speech means.

Few industry experts worry that Musk's desire for free speech on Twitter could mean rolling back some of the platform's work to curb hates speech, misinformation, harassment and other harmful content. Others questioned whether Musk might restore former President Donald Trump's account, which was removed early in previous year for violating Twitter policies against inciting violence following the Capitol Riot. Such a move could have significant ramifications for the upcoming 2024 US presidential election.

While Twitter is smaller than some social media rivals, it has an outsized influence in the online and offline worlds because it’s used by various journalists, public figures and politicians and has sometimes acted as a model for other platforms in how to handle harmful content. Don’t allow Twitter to become a petri dish for hate speech and falsehoods that subvert our democracy, Derrick Johnson, president of the NAACP, said in his statement directed at Musk Monday following the deal.

Musk wants major changes 

Musk has framed his pursuit of Twitter as one necessary to preserve “free speech.” Although he has not said specifically what he wants to change, he has been critical of Twitter in the past, suggesting that the platform stifles free speech and engages in “censorship.” 

In last few weeks, he has indicated that he would loosen Twitter’s content moderation policies and pull back on efforts to rid the platform of bad actors that violate the service’s guidelines. Musk has also said that hopes his ownership of Twitter does not cause anyone to leave. “I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter,” he tweeted Monday. “Because that is what free speech means.” 

But content moderation isn’t Musk’s only area of interest. Here’s what else he has said he wants to change about Twitter. 

• He has called for the addition of an edit button, which Twitter says is currently in the works. 
• He wants users who subscribe to Twitter Blue to be able to pay with his favorite cryptocurrency: dogecoin. 
• Musk says that on Twitter should make its algorithm - which determines which posts are shown to which users open source so as to “increase trust” in the platform.
• Musk says that Twitter should eliminate the spam bots that plague its platform or die trying, and will authenticate all real humans with a verification badge of some sort.

A new and uncertain era for Twitter

Musk's initial bid, many following the company wondered whether Twitter would try to find another buyer, especially after the company put in place a poison pill to make it more difficult for Musk to acquire the company without its approval. But CFRA senior equity analyst Angelo Zino said Monday that Twitter's board more seriously considering Musk's offer may have come "from the Board's realization that an alternative bid from a 'white knight' may be difficult to come by, especially following the decline in asset prices from social media companies in recent weeks/months.

It isn’t clear whether Agrawal - who took over the CEO role from founder Jack Dorsey in November, will remain in the top job following the takeover. Musk previously tweeted a meme comparing Agrawal to former Soviet leader Joseph Stalin. Musk also said in his offer letter to buy Twitter that he doesn’t have confidence in management. Nevertheless, put an end to nearly a decade of chaos at Twitter as a public company, during which it has cycled through CEOs, grappled with an activist investor and struggled to ignite growth and successfully monetize its influential user base. On Monday, Agrawal said that in his statement - Twitter has a purpose and relevance that impacts the entire world, He added: Deeply proud of our teams and inspired by the work that has never been more important.