This took the technology world by surprise. After negotiations and a refusal to join Twitter’s board of directors, Elon Musk has officially acquired Twitter (NYSE:).

Musk and Twitter’s board negotiated an initial offer at the beginning and accepted it on Monday 25th.

On April 4th, the world’s richest man bought 9.1% of Twitter’s total shares, which led him to become the largest shareholder of the social media platform. He was then invited to become part of the board of directors under one condition – he couldn’t own more than 15% of the total shares.

Musk declined to be a board member after being subjected to the condition. At that point, speculations were already swirling about Musk’s next move via Twitter.

On April 14th, the billionaire made an offer to buy the platform at $54.20 per share, totaling a $44 billion deal – the biggest social media acquisition to date after Microsoft (NASDAQ:) acquired LinkedIn for $26.2 billion.

“As a result, I am offering to buy 100% of Twitter for $54.20 per share in cash, a 54% premium over the day before I began investing in Twitter and a 38% premium over the day before my investment was publicly announced. My offer is my best and final offer and if it is not accepted, I would need to reconsider my position as a shareholder,” Musk stated.

What’s the Future of Twitter?

Twitter appears to be facing significant changes. Musk’s tweets in the last weeks dropping several hints to the platform’s users: there will be changes for freedom of speech, open code, an “edit button,” and content/advertisement moderation.

“I invested in Twitter as I believe in its potential to be the platform for free speech around the globe, and I believe free speech is a societal imperative for a functioning democracy,”
Musk’s letter was sent to Bret Taylor, Twitter Chairman.

He believes Twitter must go private. According to the mogul, it fails to “strive nor serve” free speech. During a TED talk on April 14th (the day he made his offer public), he mentioned that the social media platform needs more clarity in its rules and algorithms, and claimed that he isn’t interested in making a profit.

Yesss!!! pic.twitter.com/0T9HzUHuh6

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 25, 2022

For now, the public seems to have differing opinions about Musk’s takeover. Many people congratulated Tesla’s (NASDAQ:) CEO. However, many are worried about Twitter’s functionality and what it means for morality. There have also been concerns over Musk’s latest tweets in which he mocked other famous figures, leading to the question: what will the ‘free speech advocate’ – billionaire bring to users worldwide?

Over the past decades, Elon Musk hasn’t invested in projects that weren’t game-changers in the industry, so a new and unexpected turn could come at any moment to the social media.

Flipside

• Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is set to make $978 million from Musk’s buyout.
• Twitter shares are trading at $51.70 right now, more than 30% increase in just one month. Meanwhile, Elon’s favorite cryptocurrency, , also surged by over 14% in the last 24 hours.