World’s richest man Tesla’s Elon Musk won’t be joining Twitter’s board of directors as previously announced, but he remains its largest shareholder.
Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal tweeted the news, which followed a weekend of Musk tweets suggesting possible changes to Twitter, including making the site ad-free. Nearly 90% of Twitter’s 2021 revenue came from ads.
“Elon’s appointment to the board was to become officially effective on 4/9, but Elon shared that same morning that he would not be joining the board,” Agrawal wrote in a reposted note originally sent to Tesla employees.
“I believe this is for the best.”
Agrawal didn’t offer an explanation for Musk’s apparent decision, although he dropped one major hint.
The Twitter board “believed having Elon as a fiduciary of the company, where he, like all board members, has to act in the best interests of the company and all our shareholders, was the best path forward,” he wrote.
Musk now has a 9% stake in Twitter, raising questions about how he might try to reshape the social media platform as Twitter’s biggest shareholder.
Musk’s 80.5 million Twitter followers make him one of the most popular figures on the platform, rivalling pop stars like Ariana Grande and Lady Gaga.
But his prolific tweeting has sometimes gotten him into trouble, such as when he has used it to promote his business ventures, rally Tesla loyalists, question pandemic measures and pick fights.
Twitter’s CEO and other board members have praised Musk, suggesting they might take his ideas seriously.
Agrawal’s initial actions since taking over from co-founder Jack Dorsey in November have involved reorganizing divisions without making major changes.
The company has long lagged behind its social media rivals and boasts far fewer users.
