X is reportedly worth almost 80 per cent less than it was when Elon Musk bought the social network two years ago, according to estimates from investment company Fidelity.
In October 2022, Musk hosted the social media platform’s public trading and dished out an insane US$44 billion to take the company private. Fidelity has disclosed what it believes is the value of its shares of X, and those estimates serve as a closely watched barometer for the overall health of the company.
At the end of August this year, those shares were reportedly worth just US$4.2 million, representing a 79% drop from the estimated share price of $19.66 million when Musk acquired Twitter and a 24% drop from the end of July alone.
If these values are an indication of the overall health of the brand, it places the value of X at just US$9.4 billion – no small number but a significant drop from the US$44 billion that Musk shelled out for the company.
It is important to note that these numbers are just an estimate and that other investors may value the brand differently. B&T approached X for comment but did not receive a response.
Elon Musk endorsed a literal white supremacist conspiracy theory
one of the most powerful people in the world. he has government contracts, major investors
where’s the ADL? why hasn’t StopAntisemitism, Accuracy in Media said a word?
is it because Elon isn’t a college student? https://t.co/AnTkak8X0J
— Matt Binder (@MattBinder) November 16, 2023
Musk apologised shortly after for what he deemed his “dumbest” post in an on-stage interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin but later went on to tell advertisers to “Go f— yourself.” It was a pretty frank statement for the owner of a company that, until recently, received 90 per cent of its revenue from advertising partners.
Musk said he would not be “blackmailed” by advertisers who might pull their spend from X following his widely reported touting of antisemitic conspiracy theories on X.
Appearing on stage at Cannes this year, Musk clarified his comments saying that it was “not to advertising as a whole” but it was essential to maintain freedom of speech on X where advertisers were “insisting on censorship.” Musk said that advertisers had the right to choose only to appear next to content that they deem safe. However, they did not have the right to insist on content being removed from the platform.
As X struggles to regain financial stability, the question remains whether Musk’s broader AI ambitions can save the platform from its ongoing decline or if it will continue on it’s current downward spiral.
