Support NeoGAF

[winjer]

Elon Musk’s X Is Now Worth Around A Fifth Of The $44 Billion He Paid For It, Fidelity Says

Fidelity has repeatedly cut the value of its stake in the social media firm since Musk’s acquisition.

www.forbes.com

Elon Musk’s X is worth a little more than one-fifth of the $44 billion he paid to acquire the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, according to Fidelity, the latest in a series of valuation cuts by Fidelity since Musk’s takeover in 2022.

Fidelity’s stake in X is now worth about $4.19 million, an estimate that values X at $9.4 billion, according to recent disclosures from Fidelity.

Fidelity’s initial $19.6 million holding from before Musk purchased X in October 2022 has been reduced by nearly 79% as of the end of August, the company said.

The investment firm has reduced the value of its stake multiple times this year: Fidelity marked down the value of its shares by 10.2% in January and another 5.7% in February, despite increasing its estimates by 11% in December.

 

[rm082e]

It's all going according to plan...

 

[Hookshot]

Need to lose money to make money.

 

[jufonuk]

 

[JeTmAn81]

Hahahahaha

 

[SEGAvangelist]

Thank God he bought it, though. It's changed things in the culture war.

 

[Kacho]

Twitter sure is something these days. 10 years ago my feed was nothing but NFL and gaming. Now it's politics and people dying.

 

[Hrk69]

He had a puff but he smoked it like it was a cigar

Nobody is getting stoned that way

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

It's clear -- and was open in his statements about motivation from the beginning -- that making it a cash cow wasn't even one part of the reasoning. He took over Twitter to fight back against the absolutely soul crushing level of censorship and narrative control that it had grown into, coming from combined corporate and governmental sources.

Making it profitable would be a simpleton's game: do what was already being done, submit totally to corporate/regime interests, and the advertising money will flow. Thankfully, he isn't quite that level of simpleton, though I can't say the same for the opening post.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

Musk

 

[MrMephistoX]

It's clear -- and was open in his statements about motivation from the beginning -- that making it a cash cow wasn't even one part of the reasoning. He took over Twitter to fight back against the absolutely soul crushing level of censorship and narrative control that it had grown into, coming from combined corporate and governmental sources.

Making it profitable would be a simpleton's game: do what was already being done, submit totally to corporate/regime interests, and the advertising money will flow. Thankfully, he isn't quite that level of simpleton, though I can't say the same for the opening post.

I don’t agree with him on everything (the verboten P word especially) but I can buy the argument that he bought Twitter because his moral compass told him it was an act of public service.

 

[IntentionalPun]

It's clear -- and was open in his statements about motivation from the beginning -- that making it a cash cow wasn't even one part of the reasoning. He took over Twitter to fight back against the absolutely soul crushing level of censorship and narrative control that it had grown into, coming from combined corporate and governmental sources.

Making it profitable would be a simpleton's game: do what was already being done, submit totally to corporate/regime interests, and the advertising money will flow. Thankfully, he isn't quite that level of simpleton, though I can't say the same for the opening post.

This is quite the head cannon you’ve imagined. You think he got a $13 billion loan and another $5-6 billion in investment without any plan for profit?

 

[Evolved1]

It's clear -- and was open in his statements about motivation from the beginning -- that making it a cash cow wasn't even one part of the reasoning. He took over Twitter to fight back against the absolutely soul crushing level of censorship and narrative control that it had grown into, coming from combined corporate and governmental sources.

Making it profitable would be a simpleton's game: do what was already being done, submit totally to corporate/regime interests, and the advertising money will flow. Thankfully, he isn't quite that level of simpleton, though I can't say the same for the opening post.

can't tell if this is satire.

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

I don’t agree with him on everything (the verboten P word especially) but I can buy the argument that he bought Twitter because his moral compass told him it was an act of public service.

It's not even speculation of course, he was on the record and it was reported everywhere prior to his purchase.

Eg. take something mainstream like Business Insider at the time:

Musk said his interest in buying the company is not due to monetary reasons but rather to aid the interests of civilization.

When asked why he made the billion-dollar offer in an interview last week at the TED2022 conference, Musk told TED's Chris Anderson: "I think it's very important for there to be an inclusive arena for free speech."

It's "not a way to make money," Musk said, adding, "I don't care about the economics at all."

 

[SEGAvangelist]

It's clear -- and was open in his statements about motivation from the beginning -- that making it a cash cow wasn't even one part of the reasoning. He took over Twitter to fight back against the absolutely soul crushing level of censorship and narrative control that it had grown into, coming from combined corporate and governmental sources.

Making it profitable would be a simpleton's game: do what was already being done, submit totally to corporate/regime interests, and the advertising money will flow. Thankfully, he isn't quite that level of simpleton, though I can't say the same for the opening post.

Also, the political influence could change the course of the election. It's pretty clear which candidate make him richer, so you could say he's playing the long game.

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

This is quite the head cannon you’ve imagined. You think he got a $13 billion loan and another $5-6 billion in investment without any plan for profit?

Yes he had a ton of public statements about his motivations, which apparently aren't necessary to read before some of you create your own reality.

He did say that having some continued revenue is important to keep it going, but over and over again said openly that his motivations were about changing Twitter's impact on democracy, and that in no way was he motivated to buy Twitter as any kind of profit making scheme whatsoever.

 

[IntentionalPun]

It's not even speculation of course, he was on the record and it was reported everywhere prior to his purchase.

Eg. take something mainstream like Business Insider at the time:

He also told loads of people about his plan to use Twitter to get his “X everything app” dream off the ground… basically building a bank.

That’s the problem with Musk, he’s just full of shit and says different things depending on his mood.

In your version of events he just completely scammed $20 billion out of investors.

 

[Ozriel]

It's clear -- and was open in his statements about motivation from the beginning -- that making it a cash cow wasn't even one part of the reasoning. He took over Twitter to fight back against the absolutely soul crushing level of censorship and narrative control that it had grown into, coming from combined corporate and governmental sources.

Making it profitable would be a simpleton's game: do what was already being done, submit totally to corporate/regime interests, and the advertising money will flow. Thankfully, he isn't quite that level of simpleton, though I can't say the same for the opening post.

 

[analog_future]

Yes he had a ton of public statements about his motivations, which apparently aren't necessary to read before some of you create your own reality.

He did say that having some continued revenue is important to keep it going, but over and over again said openly that his motivations were about changing Twitter's impact on democracy, and that in no way was he motivated to buy Twitter as any kind of profit making scheme whatsoever.

Well, it's active user count is a tiny fraction of what it used to be, it's no longer trusted as any type of news source since anyone can now be "verified" by paying Elon for a blue checkmark, unchecked misinformation runs rampant, and straight-up hate and racism (like aggressive use of the "N" word, homophobic and racial slurs, etc.. etc..) are ignored or even promoted across the platform.


So not only is it valued at a fraction of what it used to be, it's also a laughingstock to anyone with half a brain and trusted by exponentially less people than ever. Nice 4D chess, Elon!

 

[Bumblebeetuna]

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

it's no longer trusted as any type of news source

Check anything reporting breaking events around the world, or check the volume of discussion of immediate events in real time, and X still dominates other platforms. His statement that X/Twitter is our de facto public square is still correct today.

 

[adamsapple]

Let that sink in

 

[Dutchy]

Twitter sure is something these days. 10 years ago my feed was nothing but NFL and gaming. Now it's politics and people dying.

This exactly. I quit cold turkey cause for the first time ever, I saw five beheadings in a single day.

Not to mention that it looks like 50% of posts and users are AI-generated, including the followers that I've been gaining:

Everyone who thinks Twitter is better off now is a huge cuck. Shit turned into a huge, unregulated circus.

 

[HL3.exe]

Have a partisan dumbfuck at the helm, No shit. Twitter has become a unregulated dumpster fire. Absolutely clown world shit. Shocked that advertisers are staying away.

 

[analog_future]

Check anything reporting breaking events around the world, or check the volume of discussion of immediate events in real time, and X still dominates other platforms. His statement that X/Twitter is our de facto public square is still correct today.

It has a tiny fraction of the influence it had prior to Elon purchasing it.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Musk got hosed on that deal.

Supposedly Twitter was on the rocks financially (which made sense since I dont think that company ever made annual profit. And if they did, they hardly ever made profit). Who knows how hyperbolic it was, but I remember people saying Twitter was close to bankruptcy too. So Musk paying around $50/share valuing the company huge made no sense.

So assuming the financials he saw were true, he's an idiot paying that much.

Then again, he wanted it bad. And tech stocks always seem to have staying power being valued high even when financials are bad. It takes a lot to drive them down to single digits. How this company stock stuck around $30+ and valuing it in the 10s of billion of market cap for ages is a mystery.

 

[NickFire]

I don't care what his motivations were. The world is better off because of his purchase.

 

[Go_Ly_Dow]

I don't care what his motivations were. The world is better off because of his purchase.

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

Not to mention that it looks like 50% of posts and users are AI-generated, including the followers that I've been gaining:

AI invasion is current trend on all social platforms. It's transforming Facebook, everything:

Not being able to mentally separate current-year shifts in the online world from Elon's interventions is one of the problem clouding the minds of simple critics.

 

[Aesius]

Have a partisan dumbfuck at the helm, No shit. Twitter has become a unregulated dumpster fire. Absolutely clown world shit. Shocked that advertisers are staying away.

Implying that partisan dumbfucks weren't at the helm before.

 

[Trunx81]

Implying that partisan dumbfucks weren't at the helm before.

They were. And they censored every person who tried to oppose them.

 

[ChuckeRearmed]

these evaluations are basically arbitrary.

 

[YCoCg]

I just wish he'd stick to what he fucking says about free speech and shit because the platform is manipulated to fuck right now. Mines gone from mainly gaming and tech to it constantly trying to push crazy fucks and anyone "influential" enough to have a tick to the top and fuck, politics, that shit is always seeping in.

 

[Mistake]

I kept an eye on things, and given some recent developments I'm definitely not making an account there. Good on him for the massive troll buy though

 

[West Texas CEO]

Not worth enough

 

[Hawking Radiation]

Twitter is now like a combination of PornHub and Rotten.com

No thanks.

 

[Ulysses 31]

 

[Kraz]

And iirc he wouldn't have bought for $44B if he wasn't forced to by Twitter through courts. Tried to back out by saying twitter misrepresented.
The price was highly inflated, but it was his own fault.

He gets so mad when advertisers leave.

+$1.2B/yr in interest on loans for the buy adding to the initial purchase price. That doesn't appear to be changing.

 

[Pegasus Actual]

Elon's acquisition of Twitter is one of the few bright spots of the last five years. In real news for the past week, Elon's SpaceX sent a Dragon capsule to the ISS to rescue two astronauts stranded by Boeing and StarLink is helping establish communications for post Hurricane Helene disaster relief.

 

[Kacho]

This exactly. I quit cold turkey cause for the first time ever, I saw five beheadings in a single day.

Not to mention that it looks like 50% of posts and users are AI-generated, including the followers that I've been gaining:

Everyone who thinks Twitter is better off now is a huge cuck. Shit turned into a huge, unregulated circus.

I pulled up Twitter this morning.

-Elon posting a Tesla truck meme
-Gmanlives saying he will review Silent Hill 2
-Cop emptying his gun into some guy at a Walmart

Ok, that’s enough Twitter for today

 

[Jaybe]

As an aside, the Walter Isaacson biography of Musk captures the Twitter purchase and follow up in-depth as the biographer had much more access to Musk over that time frame. I recommend the read and he seems genuine in wanted a ‘public square. The ‘Twitter Files” expose shared how Twitter before him suppressed a lot of speech. Fun fact, he played Elden Ring during the night before he decided to buy.

 

[Lord Panda]

There's still a chance for X to be something decent, maybe even more balanced than leaning to either extreme. It’s definitely better now with less censorship, and the community notes feature is a solid improvement. Turning it around is possible, but it’s going to take some serious effort to clean things up, beat the bots, and for Musk to rein in his impulses and stop acting like a total fuckwit—so, who knows.

 

[Dacvak]

Musk is a huge fucking tool and I hope he continues to burn Twitter to the ground.

 

[March Climber]

It's clear -- and was open in his statements about motivation from the beginning -- that making it a cash cow wasn't even one part of the reasoning. He took over Twitter to fight back against the absolutely soul crushing level of censorship and narrative control that it had grown into, coming from combined corporate and governmental sources.

Making it profitable would be a simpleton's game: do what was already being done, submit totally to corporate/regime interests, and the advertising money will flow. Thankfully, he isn't quite that level of simpleton, though I can't say the same for the opening post.

It's not even speculation of course, he was on the record and it was reported everywhere prior to his purchase.

Eg. take something mainstream like Business Insider at the time:

I was okay with his initial idea in theory (taking the most popular social media site and making it more like 4chan in terms of openness), but his execution over the time he has been in charge has been a bit too biased to the point where it has become less about 'no strict rules' and more about 'my way and my rules', including political bias and selective moderation against a certain group. Add massive bot issues onto this and what you have is a giant mess of a platform.

I feel that the reason some are reluctantly sticking around is due to heavy entrenchment within the ecosystem, i.e. 'everyone else is there, so I might as well be too'.

 

[Ozriel]

Implying that partisan dumbfucks weren't at the helm before.

At least the previous dumbfucks didn't tweak the algorithms so you'd be forced to see their partisan tweets.

This one did. Tens of millions of people force fed his bile. And now he wants to adjust the block button so even if you have him blocked, you still get to see his bullshit.

Exponentially worse.

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

At least the previous dumbfucks didn't tweak the algorithms so you'd be forced to see their partisan tweets.

This one did. Tens of millions of people force fed his bile. And now he wants to adjust the block button so even if you have him blocked, you still get to see his bullshit.

Exponentially worse.

Nonsense, the Trending page every single day was a heavily human-curated feed of progressive interpretations of topics, prior to Elon. Trending topics outside their acceptable range were clearly supressed from appearing even with millions of retweets (we know this on the record, eg. the Hunter laptop suppression, COVID "misinfo" of any kind, etc), and the little human summaries of trends were biased to the point of absurdity (something trends about abortion? it would be summarized like "right wing activists are freaking out over abortion" on the trending page, every time).

The entire site was nothing less or more than a giant consensus-manufacturing machine near the end of Dorsey's reign. Musk hasn't even come close to making a perfect platform, but to suggest it was anything more than pure propaganda 24/7 prior to him is simply nonsense.

 

[Valonquar]

His great grandfather left him 1 zillion dollars, but he only gets it if he loses 100 billion in time.

 

[LiquidMetal14]

I love the guy. He's doing more for this world than everyone here combined and all of our relatives too.

I've never been a Twitter person until the last 6-8 months. I get unfiltered and unbiased bullshit which is constantly checked with community notes. Not the filtered BS the mainstream gives you.

I'll defend that until someone here does more than the guy.

 

[Sonik]

At least the previous dumbfucks didn't tweak the algorithms so you'd be forced to see their partisan tweets.

This one did. Tens of millions of people force fed his bile. And now he wants to adjust the block button so even if you have him blocked, you still get to see his bullshit.

Exponentially worse.

Yes they did and on a far larger scale. Musk's algorithm is open source theirs wasn't, that's all you need to know about which one is less shady

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

I've never been a Twitter person until the last 6-8 months. I get unfiltered and unbiased bullshit which is constantly checked with community notes.

Yeah I'm surprised no one brings up community notes -- it's a legitimately great feature, actually works in nearly all the cases I've seen, in the sense that accurate information rises to the top.

It's another thing which makes the cash objective harder, though; every single ad with any misleading marketing elements at all was getting immediately community noted to where most of those now have to lock down all interactions/comments, but then they have less reach as a consequence. So advertisers going on there have to accept either no interaction or getting roasted for any inaccuracies.