Twitter's 'Owner Risk' Highlight Leads to Sharp Decline in Ad Revenue
[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] "The situation is worse than in 2018."
This is a complaint repeatedly voiced recently by Tesla employees working at the Twitter headquarters in San Francisco, USA, which was acquired by CEO Elon Musk. The year 2018 was cited by Musk as the "worst year" of his life. Tesla faced bankruptcy threats due to Model 3 production issues, and Musk made and then retracted statements about delisting Twitter. In several interviews, he said he worked over 120 hours a week at the time, relied on sleeping pills to sleep, and described the period as "very difficult and painful, like being tortured."
On the 15th (local time), the US economic media Business Insider reported, citing multiple sources, that the internal atmosphere at Twitter since Musk's acquisition last October resembles the worst crisis Tesla faced. One source said, "People who worked with Musk at Tesla say they have never seen him so stressed," adding, "Musk is clearly under stress."
Since the acquisition, Musk has thrown Twitter into chaos by firing half of the Twitter employees and suspending numerous accounts of prominent journalists. Twitter was heavily dependent on advertising revenue, which accounted for 89% of its 2021 revenue, but this 'owner risk' has led to advertisers leaving, causing difficulties.
According to the report, since acquiring Twitter, Musk has placed a field bed in the headquarters office and often works overnight, even mentioning the possibility of Twitter's bankruptcy. This situation is similar to Tesla's in 2018. Musk reportedly demands engineers work over 80 hours a week and continuously instructs them to meet his demands.
On the same day, Musk attended the World Government Summit (WGS) held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), via video call, emphasizing that much work remains to stabilize Twitter. He explained that he works seven days a week, sleeps six hours, and spends all his waking hours working. He added, "It would be fine to work about 80 hours a week."
Multiple sources told Business Insider that Musk's mood appears to have worsened since the end of last year due to platform-related issues, investor dissatisfaction, and rising costs. He has continuously expressed concerns about the worsening economy and frequently mentioned it in meetings. Twitter's various cost-cutting measures are understood to have been implemented in this context.
There are also testimonies that Musk shows an obsession with loyalty. He becomes very angry and fires employees who do not seem to be working hard from his perspective or who question his demands. The US IT specialized media Platformer reported that even simple internet search-based tasks at Twitter can lead to dismissal if employees express political or personal opposition, and recently a senior engineer left the company for such reasons.
Musk is also said to walk around the Twitter office asking employees what work they are doing. One source described it as a kind of test, saying, "You have to find a way to answer the questions to avoid being fired."
Meanwhile, Musk reiterated his intention to step down from the frontline of Twitter management within this year. He said, "It is necessary to stabilize the organization, ensure it is in a healthy state, and confirm that the product roadmap is clearly designed," adding, "I think we should be in a stable position by the end of this year."
Musk did not mention who would succeed him. He first expressed his intention to step down as CEO two months after acquiring Twitter, in December last year. At the meeting, Musk said, "(Since acquiring Twitter) it has been a rollercoaster."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
