Twitter, now known as X, has plummeted by 71% in value since Elon Musk acquired the social media platform in late 2022 for $44 billion, according to Fidelity. The investment group made this valuation on Monday, marking the second time in 2023 that it has recorded a drop in value for X. Fidelity was part of the group that assisted Musk in taking over Twitter, contributing $33.5 billion in equity and additional debt financing to convert it into a privately held company in October 2022.
Upon acquiring Twitter, Musk expressed his concern that the platform posed a threat to democracy and civilization itself. He argued that its leadership and employee base were propagating a left-wing “mind virus,” claiming that it was a biased company. Despite his criticism of Twitter, he took over the reins of the platform, rebranding it as X and initiating a massive layoff of thousands of employees.
Fidelity’s new valuation of X is a significant setback for Musk, who had hyped up his acquisition of Twitter, expressing his interest in turning it into a more positive and influential platform. Musk’s cavalier attitude toward advertisers and perceived threats to the platform is also a matter of concern. In late November 2023, he told advertisers threatening to leave the platform to “go f— yourself.”
Twitter has not issued any official statement on this development, and nor has Fidelity. X has gone through an extensive overhaul, including changes to its algorithm and policies. It remains to be seen if these changes will help boost the platform’s value and enhance its reputation. Nevertheless, the decline in X’s valuation has shaken up the social media industry, with many analysts considering this a warning sign for other social media platforms to focus on their performance and reputation.
Accordingly, the future of X, once considered a significant contender in the social media arena, is now uncertain. Musk’s purchase has turned out to be costly, thanks to Fidelity’s new assessment, raising concerns about the company’s prospects. Amid rumors of a new social media venture in the works, Musk has yet to outline any concrete plans concerning X’s future direction, making it harder to predict precisely where it might be headed.
“What this advertising boycott is going to do is, it is going to kill the company,” Musk said. “And the whole world will know that those advertisers killed the company.”
Responding to Disney CEO Bob Iger, who earlier mentioned Disney pulling advertising from the X platform, let loose.
“Don’t advertise. If someone is going to try and blackmail me with advertising? Blackmail me with money? Go f— yourself,” Musk said, adding: “Go f— yourself, is that clear? Hey Bob, if you’re in the audience. That’s how I feel, don’t advertise.”
