Musk says he’s having second thoughts about buying Twitter : NPR

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Elon Musk has a deal to invest in Twitter for $44 billion. But now, apparently, he has uncertainties. Such major uncertainties, so he suggests, that he could possibly kill the offer. Or perhaps Elon Musk is getting Elon Musk and trolling for a improved discount. And all of this is actively playing out, where else? – but on Twitter. I spoke with NPR tech correspondent Shannon Bond to have an understanding of what is actually likely on.

SHANNON BOND, BYLINE: Musk mentioned at a convention in Miami on Monday that he is concerned about the selection of fake accounts on Twitter.

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ELON MUSK: You know, at the conclude of the day, attaining – it has to be fixable, and fixable, you know, with fair time frame and devoid of revenues collapsing along the way and all that form of things. And so, you know, I definitely want to see how these matters are being calculated.

BOND: But, you know, for a long time, Twitter has mentioned it estimates fewer than 5% of accounts are faux. But on Tuesday, Musk demanded general public evidence of that variety. Or else, he explained, estimate, “This deal can not transfer forward.” Try to remember, he initiated this offer. Also, without delivering any evidence, he claimed 20% of accounts may perhaps be bogus. Then a single of Musk’s followers tweeted that the Securities and Exchange Commission really should search into this. Musk tweeted in reaction, hi @SECGov, any one property? SECGov is the agency’s formal account. And, Leila, which is the very same company that, in 2018, fined Musk $20 million over his false claims on Twitter that he had funding to choose Tesla personal.

FADEL: Okay, So is this a bluff to get a much better deal, or is Musk seeking to pull out?

BOND: Nicely, if he does walk away, he’d almost definitely be on the hook to shell out Twitter a $1 billion breakup cost. And gurus I’ve spoken with say Twitter could even it’s possible possibly sue him for additional damages. Now, Musk is relying on his Tesla shares to finance this bargains, and the price tag of those has fallen sharply. So quite a few observers speculate Musk intends to renegotiate his rate for Twitter. And at Monday’s conference, Musk instructed he could do just that.

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MUSK: In earning the Twitter give, I was certainly reliant upon the reality and precision of their community filings. And if those filings are not correct, it’s only not – which is – it is not – you can’t fork out the similar rate for anything that is a lot worse than they claimed.

BOND: But, Leila, Musk waived because of diligence in carrying out this offer, and that is like obtaining a residence with out doing an inspection.

FADEL: So what effect is the drama having on Twitter?

BOND: Effectively, its share rate is way down, and there are problems it could tank even further more if Musk backs out. And this is just incorporating to substantial uncertainty and disruption for the company. Twitter has frozen choosing. It truly is reducing investing. Numerous major executives are leaving. So no matter whether Musk goes via with the deal or walks absent, the entire course of action dangers leaving Twitter weaker than it was ahead of – ruined.

FADEL: Ok. So to recap, a minor in excess of a thirty day period ago, Musk offered to buy Twitter. Twitter at first resisted, later on accepted. Now Musk is the 1 with cold toes, proper?

BOND: Sure, correct. And Twitter states it can be nonetheless fully commited to receiving this deal finished at the cost Musk agreed to. CEO Parag Agrawal tweeted a prolonged rebuttal to Musk’s criticism. Musk replied on Twitter with a poop emoji.

FADEL: NPR’s Shannon Bond, thank you so considerably.

BOND: Thanks, Leila.

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