Elon Musk announced Tuesday that he would step down as CEO of Twitter whenever he finds someone “foolish” enough to replace him.
“I will resign as CEO as soon as I find someone foolish enough to take the job!” Musk said in a tweet late on Tuesday. “After that, I will just run the software & servers teams.”
Musk held an informal poll on the social media site a few days ago, asking users if he should resign and promising to follow the results. 57.5 percent of the more than 17.5 million votes supported Musk’s resignation. Approximately 42% were against the move.
Musk, whose $44 billion buyout of the firm was completed in October, stated in court last month that he expected to limit his time at Twitter and find someone else to administer it “over time.”
Musk responded to the poll by tweeting, “No one wants the job who can actually keep Twitter alive. There is no successor.”
Musk made the statement amid an onslaught of criticism directed at his company’s management, including massive layoffs, journalists suspensions, and a policy prohibiting users from publishing links to competing for social networking platforms.
Musk, who has defined himself as a “free speech absolutist,” apologized for the link policy, stating that any changes at the company will require a vote.
Tesla’s share price has dropped by one-third since Musk took over the social media company, leading to rumors that the billionaire is pressured to step down from the platform.
Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives applauded Musk’s announcement that he would step down as CEO.
“Finally a good step in the right direction to end this painful nightmare situation for Tesla investors,” Ives wrote on Twitter.
