Elon Musk has officially acquired control of Twitter for $44 billion, ushering in an uncertain new era for the influential platform under one of its fiercest critics, AFP reports.

“The bird is free,” the Tesla and SpaceX boss tweeted Thursday night.

“Let the party begin,” added the sullen executive, whose provocations are admired by some and disgusted by others, added on Friday.

First steps

At the time, he announced plans to equip the social network with “a content moderation board with a wide range of opinions.”

“No major decision about content or reactivating accounts will be made without board input,” said the multi-billionaire, who has established himself as a leading advocate for free speech.

Elon Musk is now in full control as he has decided to delete Twitter.

“The merger between Twitter and X Holdings II, a company controlled by Elon Musk, was completed on October 27,” the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) announced Friday morning. “All Twitter shares were exchanged for $54.20 in cash,” she said.

New York Stock Exchange Photo: Sipa USA / ddp USA / Profimedia

The first dismissals

According to anonymous sources to CNBC and the Washington Post, the new owner fired the platform’s chief executive officer Parag Agrawal and two other executives, chief financial officer Ned Segal and chief legal officer Vijay Gadde.

When contacted by AFP, Twitter did not confirm the information.

But Ned Segal took to Twitter on Friday to thank his former colleagues for the “most fulfilling” period of his career.

Twitter has the potential to “democratize communication and knowledge,” he tweeted. “This is a huge responsibility for everyone working towards this goal. I wish them strength, wisdom and foresight,” he wrote.

“Helping humanity”

Elon Musk had to complete the acquisition of the social network by Friday, otherwise the trial would be held in November.

The deal has dragged on since the announcement in late April of a $44 billion takeover offer that Twitter reluctantly accepted.

In early July, the entrepreneur tried to unilaterally exit the business, accusing Twitter of lying, but the company’s board of directors appealed to the court.

Earlier this month, just days before the start of a lawsuit that Twitter looked set to win, Elon Musk finally offered to close the deal at the price originally agreed upon.

Elon Musk became the new owner of Twitter. Photo: video recording

His rise to the top of Twitter is divisive.

His supporters, especially the American right, applaud his absolutist view of free speech. But many employees, users, NGOs and elected officials fear the platform will be even more infested with abuses, from harassment to misinformation, than it is now.

Elon Musk has opened the door for the return of Donald Trump, who was removed from Twitter after he supported his fans who took part in the storming of the Capitol in January 2021.

On Thursday, Elon Musk tried to reassure advertisers who prefer to support their ads with consensual content, saying he wants to allow the site to express all opinions without turning it into a “hell” platform where anything is allowed.

“It is essential to the future of civilization that there is a public space on the Internet where diverse opinions can be healthyly discussed without resorting to violence,” he wrote in an appeal aimed specifically at the brands that generate the most revenue on Twitter.

He also said that he made the purchase not because it was “easy” or “to make money” but to “try to help humanity.”

Fierce competition

European Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton has warned the billionaire that Twitter will have to comply with new EU digital rules that force major platforms to moderate their content.

“In Europe, the bird will fly according to our European rules,” Breton wrote on Twitter.

Twitter, which had 238 million so-called “active” daily users at the end of June, attracts a smaller audience than a giant like Facebook, but many politicians, companies and media.

Financially, the game looks tough for a company that has always struggled to turn a profit, and will also have to pay back the $13 billion loan that Elon Musk took out to buy it.

Twitter’s delisting gives it a lot of leeway. According to several American newspapers, he plans to lay off thousands of employees of the group.