Twitter, Inc.

This article is about the former company. For the now-rebranded service, see Twitter. For the current company, see X Corp.

Twitter, Inc.
Company typePrivate (2007–2013, 2022–2023)
Public (2013–2022)
NYSE: TWTR (2013–2022)
IndustrySocial media
PredecessorObvious Corporation
FoundedApril 2007; 17 years ago (2007-04) in San Francisco
Founders
DefunctApril 2023; 1 year ago (2023-04)
FateAcquired by Elon Musk and merged into X Corp.
SuccessorX Corp.
Headquarters
San Francisco, California
,
United States
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Elon Musk
Services
RevenueIncrease US$5.1 billion (2021)
Decrease US$−493 million (2021)
Negative increase US$−221 million (2021)
Total assetsIncrease US$14.1 billion (2021)
Total equityDecrease US$7.3 billion (2021)
Number of employees
c. 1,000 (2023)
ParentX Corp.
ASN
Websiteabout.x.com Edit this at Wikidata
Footnotes / references
[1][2][3][4][5]

Twitter, Inc. was an American social media company based in San Francisco, California, which operated and was named for its flagship social media network prior to its rebrand as X. In addition to Twitter, the company previously operated the Vine short video app and Periscope livestreaming service. In April 2023, Twitter merged with X Holdings[6] and ceased to be an independent company, becoming a part of X Corp.[7]

Twitter was created by Jack Dorsey, Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams in March 2006 and was launched that July. By 2012, more than 100 million users tweeted 340 million tweets a day.[8][9] The company went public in November 2013. By 2019, Twitter had more than 330 million monthly active users.[10]

On April 25, 2022, Twitter agreed to a $44 billion buyout by Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, one of the biggest deals to turn a company private.[11][12] On July 8, Musk terminated the deal.[13] Twitter's shares fell,[14] leading company officials to sue Musk in Delaware's Court of Chancery on July 12.[15] On October 4, Musk announced his intention to purchase the company as he had agreed, for $44 billion, or $54.20 a share;[16] the agreement closed on October 27.

Following Musk's takeover, Twitter was criticized for an increase in hate speech,[17] as well as for perceived systemic prioritization of right-wing content.[18][19][20][21] His acquisition of the company has been characterized by large-scale policy changes, mass layoffs and resignations, and a dramatic shift in the company's work culture.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Dorsey2006 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "US SEC: FY2021 Form 10-K Twitter, Inc". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Archived from the original on March 28, 2023. Retrieved March 27, 2022.
  3. ^ "Twitter – Company". Archived from the original on November 4, 2019. Retrieved July 30, 2019 – via Twitter.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference launch was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Hays, Kali (May 2, 2023). "Elon Musk has chopped Twitter down to about 1,000 employees". Business Insider. Archived from the original on May 2, 2023. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
  6. ^ Conger, Kate (October 28, 2022). "How Twitter Will Change as a Private Company". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on October 28, 2022. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
  7. ^ Wei, De Wei; Katanuma, Marika (April 11, 2023). "Twitter Company 'No Longer Exists,' Is Now Part of Musk's X". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on April 11, 2023. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  8. ^ "Twitter turns six". March 21, 2012. Archived from the original on May 13, 2013. Retrieved May 10, 2022 – via Twitter.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Twitter_500 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ "Twitter overcounted active users since 2014, shares surge on profit hopes". USA Today. Archived from the original on January 1, 2020. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  11. ^ Isaac, Mike; Hirsch, Lauren (April 25, 2022). "Musk's deal for Twitter is worth about $44 billion". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  12. ^ Feiner, Lauren (April 25, 2022). "Twitter accepts Elon Musk's buyout deal". CNBC. Archived from the original on April 26, 2022. Retrieved April 25, 2022.
  13. ^ "Elon Musk terminating $44 billion deal to buy Twitter". MSN. July 8, 2022. Archived from the original on July 8, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
  14. ^ "Twitter shares fall as Elon Musk backs out of deal". BBC News. July 11, 2022. Archived from the original on July 12, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  15. ^ Conger, Kate; Hirsch, Lauren (July 12, 2022). "Twitter Sues Musk After He Tries Backing Out of $44 Billion Deal". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 20, 2022. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  16. ^ Levy, David Faber, Jonathan Vanian, Ari (October 4, 2022). "Twitter shares surge 22% after Elon Musk revives deal to buy company at original price". CNBC. Archived from the original on October 4, 2022. Retrieved October 4, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  17. ^ Sato, Mia (December 2, 2022). "Hate speech is soaring on Twitter under Elon Musk, report finds". The Verge. Archived from the original on March 19, 2023. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  18. ^ Dominick Mastrangelo, Rebecca Klar (December 8, 2022). "Musk boosts Twitter's right-wing appeal with moderation changes, 'Twitter Files'". The Hill. Archived from the original on March 18, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  19. ^ Ramirez, Nikki McCann (December 2, 2022). "Elon Brings One of America's Most Prominent Nazis Back to Twitter". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 14, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  20. ^ Press-Reynolds, Kieran. "QAnon conspiracists and far-right influencers are celebrating Elon Musk buying Twitter". Insider. Archived from the original on April 12, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2023.
  21. ^ Hart, Robert. "Elon Musk Is Restoring Banned Twitter Accounts—Here's Why The Most Controversial Users Were Removed And Who's Already Back". Forbes. Archived from the original on March 18, 2023. Retrieved March 18, 2023.