SAN FRANCISCO: Musk appears to be on track to meet a Friday deadline.
Because he wants to complete his on-again, off-again deal to buy Twitter, avoiding a trial over the $44 billion contract, which he admits is overpriced.
Following Elon Musk’s attempt to terminate the sale, Twitter filed a lawsuit to compel Musk to honor the agreement he signed in April to purchase the social media giant with a trial on the horizon, the volatile billionaire capitulated and resurrected his takeover plan.
Musk indicated that the deal was on track Wednesday by changing his Twitter handle to “Chief Twit” and posting a video of himself carrying a sink into the company’s California headquarters.
“Let that sink in!” he remarked:
“I think we’ll get an announcement on Friday saying that Elon Musk has purchased Twitter,” said Adam Badawi, a law professor at the University of California, Berkeley Since Delaware Judge Kathaleen McCormick paused litigation on October 6, Musk, the world’s richest man, has reportedly been lining up financing.
If the buyout does not close by the end of the business day, the judge will likely “bring the hammer down” and proceed to trial as soon as possible, according to Badawi.
Musk attempted to back out of the Twitter deal soon after his unsolicited offer was accepted, saying in July that he was misled by Twitter about the number of fake “bot” accounts, allegations that the company denied.
Twitter, for its part, sought to demonstrate that Musk, the CEO of Tesla, was making up reasons to leave simply because he changed his mind.
During a recent Tesla earnings call, Musk stated, “I’m excited about the Twitter situation.”
“I think it’s an asset that has sort of languished for a long time but has incredible potential, although obviously myself and the other investors are currently overpaying for Twitter.”
Twitter free-for-all:
According to the Washington Post, while pitching the deal to investors, Musk stated that he intended to lay off nearly three-quarters of Twitter’s workforce that report came as a surprise in the Twitter office, where some employees who would prefer not to work for Musk have already left, according to a worker who requested anonymity in order to speak freely.
“But some people, including myself,” the employee said of Musk, “are willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for the time being.”
“The more I learn about him, the less I like him, but I find it amusing that he brought a sink to the headquarters as a joke.”
Activists are concerned that Musk’s leadership of the site will open the door to more abusive and misleading posts.
He has vowed to dial content moderation to a bare minimum, paving the way for former US President Donald Trump to return to the platform.
The then-president was barred from acting because of fears that he would incite more violence, such as the deadly attack on the Capitol in Washington, to overturn his election loss.
Musk:
Musk will essentially be given control of Twitter and will be in charge of the often-divisive global platform once the transaction is completed.
“The current Twitter board is likely to be fired; Musk will appoint directors who are friendly to him, and he will appoint management,” Badawi predicted.
He doubted Musk’s desire to be CEO because he already runs Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and the Boring Company.
Trump now posts on his own, much smaller platform, Truth Social, and has vowed not to return to Twitter even if Musk takes over.
The former president, who is considering a presidential run in 2024, has 4.18 million followers on Truth Social, compared to 88.8 million on Twitter.
 SAN FRANCISCO: Elon Musk appears to be on track to meet a Friday deadline to complete his on-again, off-again deal to buy Twitter,.){kind=link}