Elon Musk
has had his intentions to purchase
TWTR 1.15%
second-guessed by nearly everybody in latest weeks, together with himself, however Thursday’s question-and-answer session with the corporate’s hundreds of workers confirmed his curiosity within the social-media platform stays robust. How keen hundreds of Silicon Valley workers might be to work for the world’s richest, least-decisive man is one other matter.
Just exhibiting up was a superb begin for Mr. Musk. That admittedly is a low bar however, for somebody who typically skirts enterprise decorum, and typically the foundations, participation was hardly a given. He then described Twitter with what, for him, was an uncommon quantity of heat. Whereas some individuals select hairstyles to precise themselves, he mentioned he enjoys Twitter as a very efficient megaphone for his concepts.
He has no scarcity of these. In response to workers’ questions, Mr. Musk described grand plans to morph a reasonably area of interest social-media community into one thing like a super-app, the place a billion individuals reside. Posts must be allowed to be “pretty outrageous,” however individuals should really feel comfy. Revenue will come from adverts, but in addition from funds and subscriptions. And remote-working workers’ jobs are very protected—assuming their work is “exceptional.”
With specifics obviously absent, it’s definitely value asking: In a world the place distant work is now the norm for white-collar workers, how many individuals will select to stake their profession on Mr. Musk’s subjective esteem? And who will signal as much as run this unscripted present?
Mr. Musk additionally mentioned Thursday that he doesn’t care about titles, noting that main
Tesla
he’s legally “Technoking.” But he additionally mentioned he expects Twitter’s workers will hearken to him by way of how the service will evolve. He clearly desires to name the pictures, however will possible name on another person to execute them.
Mr. Musk has had nice success motivating gifted individuals to construct the unattainable earlier than. Rocket ships and electrical automobiles each turned out to be fairly “S3XY,” although. Today’s market has chewed up and spit out the social-media sector, its pitfalls laid naked.
We know bots are an inevitability. We know that advertisers typically keep away from controversial content material. And we all know including extra partaking TikTok-like video content material might additional stress advert monetization within the near-term. No one is protected:
Meta Platforms
has misplaced over half its market worth this yr, and Twitter’s shares may need finished even worse absent Mr. Musk’s iffy bid. With rates of interest rising and customers pinched, some sell-side channel checks counsel on-line advert spending may very well be getting worse.
Leadership apart, a job at any social-media firm isn’t precisely probably the most inviting alternative proper now. If Mr. Musk actually “loves” Twitter and desires to see it fly, he would possibly attempt to be a bit extra lovable.
Write to Laura Forman at [email protected]
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