Musk biography: Ex-Twitter CEO Agrawal lacked ‘leadership quality’
An excerpt from an upcoming Musk biography reports that, after meeting Twitter’s CEO Parag Agrawal for dinner in March 2022, Musk concluded that the CEO did not have leadership quality:
He’s a really nice guy. What Twitter needs is a fire-breathing dragon and Parag is not that.
Musk fired Agrawal shortly after he purchased the company.
Musk to sue ADL for £22 billion for ‘trying to kill’ X with false anti-semitism claims
In a series of tweets, Musk says he will sue the Anti-Defamation League for $22 billion, which he says is 60% in lost revenue, as a result of the organisation putting pressure on advertisers to stop using the platform with claims that Musk and X is anti-semitic.
To be super clear, I’m pro free speech, but against anti-Semitism of any kind. Since the acquisition, The @ADL has been trying to kill this platform by falsely accusing it & me of being anti-Semitic. Our US advertising revenue is still down 60%, primarily due to pressure on advertisers by @ADL (that’s what advertisers tell us), so they almost succeeded in killing X/Twitter! If this continues, we will have no choice but to file a defamation suit against, ironically, the “Anti-Defamation” League. If they lose the defamation suit, we will insist that they drop the the “anti” part of their name, since obviously …
Musk later explains:
Advertisers avoid controversy, so all that is needed for ADL to crush our US & European ad revenue is to make unfounded accusations. They have much less power in Asia, so our ad revenue there is still strong. This “controversy” causes advertisers to “pause”, but that pause is permanent until ADL gives the green light, which they will not do without us agreeing to secretly suspend or shadowban any account they don’t like. That is the relationship they’ve had with X/Twitter for many years. Presumably, they have that with all western search or social media orgs.
Our US advertising revenue is still down 60%, primarily due to pressure on advertisers by @ADL (that’s what advertisers tell us), so they almost succeeded in killing X/Twitter!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 4, 2023
When told about a $10.5 million defamation fine awarded against ADL, Musk says that the organisation would be potentially liable for half of X’s revenue:
Interesting. In our case, they would potentially be on the hook for destroying half the value of the company, so roughly $22 billion.
Interesting.
In our case, they would potentially be on the hook for destroying half the value of the company, so roughly $22 billion.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 4, 2023
Musk: trans daughter a ‘full communist’
According to Musk biographer Isaacson, Musk says his daughter’s school turned her into a “full communist” who thinks rich people are “evil.” (Vivian, who is transgender, legally changed her name and gender in 2022, partly to distance herself from Musk.) Isaacson says that Musk’s rift with Vivian “pained him more than anything in his life since the infant death of his firstborn child Nevada,” who died just 10 weeks old of sudden infant death syndrome. He says that Musk was “generally sanguine” when he first learned of his child’s transition, but things changed when Vivian began expressing extreme Marxist views and declared her intention to sever all ties with her father. Musk partly blames her private K-12 school, “Crossroads,” in Santa Monica, saying:
She went beyond socialism to being a full communist and thinking that anyone rich is evil.
Ramaswamy wants Musk as presidential advisor
At a Newton, Iowa, town hall, Ramaswamy says he wants Musk as an adviser if he becomes president. The candidate says he wants advisors who do not come from within government.
I’ve enjoyed getting to know better, Elon Musk recently, I expect him to be an interesting adviser of mine because he laid off 75% of the employees at Twitter. And then the effectiveness actually went up.
Musk: X to file action against anti-hate legislation
Responding to a post blaming “hate misinformation” for a potential “draconian crackdown on free speech” in Ireland and elsewhere, Musk says X Corp. will “be filing legal action to stop this.” This comes after controversial anti-hate legislation passed the Dáil in Ireland, waiting to be approved by the Seanad.
X will be filing legal action to stop this. Can’t wait for discovery to start!
Exactly.
X will be filing legal action to stop this. Can’t wait for discovery to start! https://t.co/ROxXEuO8it
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 23, 2023
Musk: Cybertruck parts must have ‘sub 10-micron’ Lego-like accuracy
In a leaked email to Tesla employees, Musk says that the Cybertruck needs to be manufactured to single-digit micron tolerance due to its straight edges.
Due to the nature of Cybertruck, which is made of bright metal with mostly straight edges, any dimensional variation shows up like a sore thumb. All parts for this vehicle, whether internal or from suppliers, need to be designed and built to sub 10 micron accuracy. That means all part dimensions need to be to the third decimal place in millimeters and tolerances need be specified in single digit microns. If LEGO and soda cans, which are very low cost, can do this, so can we. Precision predicates perfectionism.
Elon
Musk: ‘How does the medicine taste?’
Musk mocks users on X for complaining about plans to remove the platform’s “block” feature (which he announced in response to an account questioning its utility), asking how “the medicine” tastes and saying that he is using the feature while it still exists to ignore users who want it to stay.
Pretty fun blocking people who complain that blocking is going away. How does the medicine taste?
Pretty fun blocking people who complain that blocking is going away.
How does the medicine taste? 😂😂
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 20, 2023
Musk blocks Woods after actor complains about block feature removal
Musk blocks Woods following his comments on the X CEO’s plans to remove the block feature from Twitter.
If @elonmusk removes the ability to block concerted harassment by trolls or organized political entities, how will “X” be any different from Jack Dorsey’s horrid Twitter? Musk, whom I once championed, is only doing this to protect his advertisers anyway. Users of X are mere pawns to turn the site into an electronic shopping mall. The man I thought was a defender of free speech is just another greedy capitalist. Disappointing, but not surprising.
To which Musk responds:
Then delete your account
Then delete your account
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 20, 2023
Woods then posts a screenshot showing that Musk has blocked him:
Your prerogative, sir, which is exactly my point. Have a nice day.
You prerogative, sir, which is exactly my point. Have a nice day. pic.twitter.com/qt8ZD3wbM9
— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) August 20, 2023
Musk: X may fail
Musk says that X may fail:
The sad truth is that there are no great ‘social networks’ right now. We may fail, as so many have predicted, but we will try our best to make there be at least one.
The sad truth is that there are no great “social networks” right now.
We may fail, as so many have predicted, but we will try our best to make there be at least one.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 19, 2023
Musk: ‘arrived in amazing Japan’
On X, Musk announces his first arrival in Japan since 2014, calling it “amazing Japan” and adding two Japanese flag emojis.
Just arrived in amazing 🇯🇵 Japan 🇯🇵
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 17, 2023
Musk: ‘fight is on’ at Zuckerberg’s house
Musk says he is going to Zuckerberg’s house “tonight” to fight him in an unscheduled bout.
For the Tesla FSD test drive in Palo Alto tonight, I will ask the car to drive to @finkd’s house. Will also test latest X livestream video, so you can monitor our adventure in real-time! If we get lucky and Zuck my actually answers the door, the fight is on!
For the Tesla FSD test drive in Palo Alto tonight, I will ask the car to drive to @finkd’s house.
Will also test latest X livestream video, so you can monitor our adventure in real-time!
If we get lucky and Zuck my 👅 actually answers the door, the fight is on!
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 14, 2023
Zuckerberg: Musk ‘isn’t serious’ about fight
On threads, Zuckerberg says Musk isn’t serious about the proposed cage fight:
I offered a real date. Dana White (UFC boss) offered to make this a legit competition for charity. Elon won’t confirm a date, then says he needs surgery, and now asks to do a practice round in my backyard instead. If Elon ever gets serious about a real date and official event, he knows how to reach me. Otherwise, time to move on. I’m going to focus on competing with people who take the sport seriously.
Musk: ‘Zuck is a chicken’
Musk calls Zuckerberg a “chicken” after the Meta founder says it is time to forget about their caged fight. In another post, he says Zuckerberg “can’t eat at chic fil a because that would be cannibalism.”
Zuck is a chicken
Zuck is a chicken
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 13, 2023
He can’t eat at chic fil a because that would be cannibalism
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 13, 2023
King: Model S a ‘good automobile’
King says his Tesla Model S is a “good automobile” that has never given him “a speck of trouble.” Purchased in 2013, King concedes that his car does not have “the same range as” newer models, but defends the vehicle and says it “still goes fast.”
Never mind Twitter, what about the car? I bought my Tesla Model S in 2013…it’s never given me a speck of trouble. Still goes fast. Good automobile.
Never mind Twitter, what about the car? I bought my Tesla Model S in 2013. Doesn't have the same range as the newest ones, but it's never given me a speck of trouble. Still goes fast. Good automobile.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) August 13, 2023
Twitter signs and equipment to be auctioned
In part due to its rebrand, X announces it is auctioning off a large number of Twitter-branded items, including the bird logo that was previously on the outside of the building. Other items for sale include sculptures, booths, chairs, computers, couches, musical equipment and artworks.
The auction, hosted by Heritage Global Partners, will start on September 12 at 7 a.m. PST and end on September 14 at 9 a.m. PST. All items have a starting bid of $25. They are all being sold out of X headquarters in San Francisco. According to HGP’s terms and conditions, buyers must use the items in their businesses and cannot purchase them for personal use.
Musk: ABC prefers ‘censorship-friendly’ social media
Musk says ABC prefers “censorship-friendly” social media after the company announces it is shutting down all but four of its X (formerly Twitter) accounts. ABC will now operate just four accounts on X: ABC News, ABC Sport, ABC Chinese and ABC Australia. While still posting to its main @abcnews X account, ABC’s media team will be trying to grow its TikTok audience. ABC’s managing director David Anderson says “toxic interactions” on X led to the move.
[C]losing individual program accounts helps limit the exposure of team members to the toxic interactions that unfortunately are becoming more prevalent on X. Concerningly, X has reduced its trust and safety teams. Additionally, it is introducing charges which make the platform increasingly costly to use.
Musk writes:
Well of course they prefer censorship-friendly social media. The Australian public does not.
Grimes takes credit for Musk’s ‘dick measuring’ tweet
Grimes takes credit for Musk’s “dick measuring” challenge to Zuckerberg. In July 2023, after calling Zuckerberg a “cuck” in a Twitter post, Musk challenged him to “a literal dick measuring contest.” Grimes says that while she did not exactly tell Musk to write the tweet, she gave him the idea for it, but she “didn’t think he was going to tweet it.”
I’m going to take credit for that one…I was like, why don’t you cut to the chase and get out a ruler. I didn’t think he was going to tweet it.
Musk says he may need back surgery
In response to a post about Zuckerberg saying he has been waiting for a confirmation of the date for their fight (Zuckerberg says he suggested Aug 26th, but did not hear back), Musk says:
Exact date is still in flux. I’m getting an MRI of my neck & upper back tomorrow. May require surgery before the fight can happen. Will know this week,
Exact date is still in flux. I’m getting an MRI of my neck & upper back tomorrow.
May require surgery before the fight can happen. Will know this week.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 7, 2023
Zuckerberg ‘ready’ to fight Musk
Zuckerberg says he is “ready today” for his cage fight with Musk. He says he even proposed a date for it on Threads (August 26th), but Musk has not responded. Musk has said that he might need surgery for a neck and back problem and has to undergo an MRI scan. He says the exact date of the fight is “in flux.” Zuckerberg reportedly has been eating 4,000 calories a day and has built an octagon in his backyard.
I’m ready today… but [Musk] hasn’t confirmed.
Musk: Fight with ‘Zuck’ to be streamed on X
Musk says that his fight with Zuckerberg will be streamed on X. He tweets:
Zuck v Musk fight will be live-streamed on 𝕏. All proceeds will go to charity for veterans.
Zuck v Musk fight will be live-streamed on 𝕏.
All proceeds will go to charity for veterans.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 6, 2023