The world’s richest man, Elon Musk, will not be joining Twitter’s board of directors, despite his 9.2% stake having recently made him the social network’s largest individual shareholder.
His appointment was due to be made official on April 9, 2022, but it appears he has changed his mind and told Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal he was withdrawing. Agrawal issued a statement outlining that Musk remained Twitter’s biggest shareholder, adding that the company would continue to be “open to his input.”
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
After the news broke, Musk reportedly tweeted a facepalm emoji, before swiftly deleting it.
Over the weekend, Musk suggested changes to the Twitter Blue premium subscription service, including reducing its price, banning advertising, and giving users the option to pay in the cryptocurrency dogecoin.
He has also recently asked fellow Twitter users whether they wanted an ‘edit’ button, as well as whether Twitter should convert its San Francisco headquarters into a homeless shelter, “since no one shows up anyway”.
Another poll tweeted by Musk asked his followers whether the letter “w” should be removed from Twitter, with the only options being “yes” and “of course”.
Musk is yet to formally comment on his decision not to go ahead with joining Twitter’s board.