Over a year after Elon Musk’s $44 billion purchase of Twitter, the platform, now renamed as X, is valued at $19 billion. This represents a substantial drop in value. Employees of X have received equity based on this valuation, which is significantly lower than the purchase price. It’s worth noting that X does not yet have an established board of directors, with Elon Musk serving as its chairman.
Other sources suggest an even larger decline in the company’s worth. Fidelity Investments, a contributor to Musk’s acquisition, estimates a 65% decrease in its investment’s value, implying X is worth approximately $15.4 billion.
These findings align with previous reports indicating a more than 50% reduction in the company’s value. In an internal memo, Musk acknowledged that X’s value is now less than $20 billion.
These outcomes are not surprising, given the extensive changes Musk implemented post-acquisition. He initiated a significant reduction in the workforce, resulting in approximately 3,700 employees losing their jobs, constituting half of the company’s workforce. Musk also made a controversial decision to eliminate Twitter’s existing verification system, reserving verification badges exclusively for the paid Twitter Blue service. This change allowed fraudulent accounts to impersonate legitimate entities, leading to the spread of misinformation and hate speech.
These challenges were further compounded by layoffs in the content moderation teams, leaving the platform ill-prepared to address the surge in misinformation. Musk’s eventful leadership at X highlights the difficulties of managing a major social media platform and the potential pitfalls of hastily implemented changes.
