Billionaire and Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been incredibly critical of social media’s stifling of free speech. Musk purchased 73.5 million Twitter shares for roughly $2.9 billion, giving him a 9.2% stake in the giant tech company.
On Sunday, Musk was officially supposed to be appointed to Twitter’s board; however, he declined to join. Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal made the announcement on Twitter:
“I sent a brief note to the company, sharing with you all here” Tweeted Agrawal with a copy of the letter he wrote to the company:
Team,
Elon Musk has decided not to join our board. Here’s what I can share about what happened. The board and I had many discussions about Elon joining the board, and with Elon directly. We were excited to collaborate and clear about the risks. We also believed that having Elon as a fiduciary of the company where he, like all board members, has to act in the best interests of the company and all our shareholders, was the best path forward. The board offered him a seat.
Elon has decided not to join our board. I sent a brief note to the company, sharing with you all here. pic.twitter.com/lfrXACavvk
— Parag Agrawal (@paraga) April 11, 2022
We announced on Tuesday that Elon would be appointed to the Board contingent on a background check and formal acceptance. Elon’s appointment to the board was to become officially effective 4/9, but Elon shared that same morning that he will no longer be joining the board. I believe this is for the best. We have and will always value input from our shareholders whether they are on our Board or not. Elon is our biggest shareholder and we will remain open to his input.
There will be distractions ahead, but our goals and priorities remain unchanged. The decisions we make and how we execute is in our hands, no one else’s. Let’s tune out the noise, and stay focused on the work and what we’re building.
On March 26 after Musk’s stake in the company became publicly known, he posted a poll to Twitter asking whether the company should add an edit button. “Yes” won with 73.6%. He also asked, “given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy. What should be done?”
Just recently, Musk asked the provocative question should the company “convert Twitter SF HQ to homeless shelter since no one shows up anyway.” 91.3% said yes.
