An hour after the announcement of the South African-born billionaire’s purchase of the social media app Twitter on Monday, Musk took to his social media to quote a message about the power of free speech.
In a tweet, he wrote: “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 in a statement.
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Since the official purchase of the app, Twitter has since seen shares rise by 5.7% to finish at $51.70 on Monday.
It is said to present an approximate premium percentage of 40% to the closing price before he made it known that he had bought a more than 9% stake in the company.
This is reportedly lower than the $70 range that the app was trading in last year.
Twitter’s former CEO – Jack Dorsey – shared a series of tweets on Monday, thanking both Musk and the app’s current CEO for getting the company out of what he terms “an impossible situation”.
“Twitter as a company has always been my sole issue and my biggest regret. It has been owned by Wall Street and the ad model. Taking it back from Wall Street is the correct first step”, Dorsey said.
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As part of the deal, Twitter is said to be currently delisted and going private.
With the freedom to make changes, the 50-year-old has made suggestions such as allowing for longer posts and adding an edit button for posts even after they have been made.
The company was founded in 2004 and is reported to have ended 2021 with $5 billion in revenue.
The app has approximately 217 million daily users around the globe, which is far less than the numbers claimed by platforms such as Facebook.
Musk has stated that he is not concerned about the economics that comes with now being what some may call “the absolute monarch” of Twitter but more about the power to influence.
It is said that users could possibly look forward to a lighter and more moderation policy.
The Tesla Motors CEO further stated that he will make the algorithm public so that people are able to understand how the application works.
