Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal revealed on Tuesday that Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has been added to the microblogging platform’s board of directors.
Musk said in a regulatory filing on Monday that he had acquired an approximately 9% stake in Twitter, making him the company’s largest stakeholder.
“I’m excited to share that we’re appointing @elonmusk to our board! Through conversations with Elon in recent weeks, it became clear to us that he would bring great value to our Board,” Agrawal posted.
“Looking forward to working with Parag & Twitter board to make significant improvements to Twitter in coming months,” Musk replied to Agrawal.
Musk will continue as a class II director until 2024, according to a new filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This is a position that can be utilised as a deterrent to takeovers.
“The Company will appoint Mr. Musk to the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) to serve as a Class II director with a term expiring at the Company’s 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders,” the filing read.
“For so long as Mr. Musk is serving on the Board and for 90 days thereafter, Mr. Musk will not, either alone or as a member of a group, become the beneficial owner of more than 14.9% of the Company’s common stock outstanding at such time, including for these purposes economic exposure through derivative securities, swaps, or hedging transactions,” it added.
According to Agrawal, Musk is both a fervent supporter and a harsh critic of the service “which is precisely what we require on Twitter and in the boardroom to make us stronger in the long run. Elon, welcome!”
According to a source, Musk contacted Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey and Agrawal immediately after acquiring his investment on March 14, informing them he wanted to join the board. According to a source, the company was keen to have him on board since they believed he could bring buzz to the platform as well as strong ideas.
In addition, Musk’s board position “may lead to some nervousness about Mr. Musk getting too much influence about the way Twitter is run, with a view to bolstering his own personal brand and that of his companies,” said Susannah Streeter, senior analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
Musk has an enormous power as a member of Twitter’s board of directors, promising substantial platform improvements. However, how would such alterations materialise? It’s tough to say, particularly considering Musk already has a lot on his plate, from SpaceX and Tesla to the Boring Company and Neuralink. Musk may argue for changes to the Twitter algorithm, which he was unhappy about just before buying the shares.
