Elon Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of Twitter, completed October 27, 2022, after months of legal drama became one of the most chaotic corporate takeovers in history, fundamentally transforming the social media platform.
The Offer
Musk, already Twitter’s most-followed user (83M followers), became its largest shareholder (9.2%) in April 2022. Days later, he offered to buy the entire company for $54.20 per share ($44B total)—a 38% premium over the previous close.
Twitter’s board initially adopted a “poison pill” to block the hostile takeover but accepted the offer April 25 after Musk secured financing. He promised to restore free speech, eliminate bots, open-source the algorithm, and defeat spam.
The Legal Battle
On July 8, 2022, Musk announced he was terminating the deal, claiming Twitter misrepresented bot accounts (claiming <5% when he alleged 20%+). Twitter sued to force the sale in Delaware Chancery Court.
As trial approached, Musk reversed course, offering again to complete the original deal to avoid a humiliating court loss. The acquisition closed October 27, 2022—the day before the trial was set to begin.
The Transformation
Musk immediately laid off 50% of staff (3,700 employees), fired executives including CEO Parag Agrawal ($42M severance), and launched Twitter Blue verification ($8/month). He reinstated banned accounts including Donald Trump, dissolved the Trust & Safety Council, and gutted content moderation.
Advertisers fled over brand safety concerns, costing Twitter $4B+ in lost revenue. Musk renamed the company “X” in July 2023. Internal documents revealed Twitter’s value had fallen to $19B by March 2023—a 57% loss.
The acquisition also saddled Twitter with $13B in debt requiring $1.2B+ annual interest payments, fundamentally weakening the company’s financial position.
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