LONDON — Billionaire Elon Musk told the BBC that running Twitter was “pretty painful” but the social media company is still largely bankrupt after its acquisition late last year.
In an interview livestreamed on Twitter Spaces late Tuesday, Musk discussed ownership of the online platform, including layoffs, misinformation and his work style.
“It wasn’t boring. It’s been like a roller coaster ride,” he told the British broadcaster at Twitter’s San Francisco headquarters.
Interviewing Musk, who also owns Tesla and SpaceX, was a rare opportunity for the mainstream press. After acquiring Twitter for his $44 billion last year, Musk’s changes included ditching the company’s communications division.
Reporters who email the company for comment now receive an automated reply containing a poop emoji.
The interview turned at times tense, with Mr. Musk demanding reporters back up his claims about rising levels of hate speech on the platform. Instead, he said many times that it was his dog, Floki.
He also revealed that he sometimes sleeps on the couch in Twitter’s San Francisco office.
Advertisers who had shunned the platform have mostly returned following Musk’s tumultuous acquisition, the billionaire declined to give details.
Musk predicted that Twitter could be “cash flow positive” this quarter “if current trends continue.” As Twitter is a private company, we are unable to review information regarding its financials.
After acquiring the platform, Musk cut a large number of jobs as part of a cost-cutting effort. He said Twitter’s workforce had been cut from about 8,000 before to about 1,500, explaining that this was something that had to be done.
“Not funny at all,” Musk said. “If we don’t cut costs soon, the company will go bankrupt.
Asked if he regretted buying the company, he said it was a “must do.”
“The level of pain on Twitter is so high. This wasn’t some kind of party,” Musk said.
https://www.ocregister.com/2023/04/12/musk-says-owning-twitter-painful-but-needed-to-be-done/ Elon Musk Says Owning Twitter Is ‘Painful’ But Must Be Done – Orange County Register