Elon Musk has an impressive resume. At age 12, Musk taught himself to code and created his first game, Blastar, which sold for around $500. From then to now, Musk has continued to grow his expansive portfolio, ranging from online banking to electric vehicles to space exploration to underground tunnels. Most recently, and most controversially, Musk acquired the social media platform Twitter for $44 billion, and President-elect Donald Trump has named him co-lead of what he coined the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE for short). Both actions have been faced with mass backlash, and while we can only imagine what Musk will do with DOGE, we can see the real effects he has had on Twitter, now X.
In 2022, Musk successfully acquired Twitter for $44 billion and turned the company private after a lengthy struggle for power. It was made abundantly clear by Musk that his main goal for the platform was to foster free speech and cut back on moderation. He is quoted saying, “Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.” A research group that specializes in analyzing social-media content with the intention to predict possible threats, The Network Contagion Research Institute, reported that in the 12 hours after Musk’s overtaking of Twitter was finalized, the use of the N-word on the platform increased by roughly 500%. In addition to the N-word, The Post also reported an increase in homophobic and sexist tweets.
Two years have passed since Musk acquired Twitter and turned it into X, and Fidelity has reported that the social media platform is worth nearly 80% less than when it was bought. Before Musk purchased Twitter in 2022, Fidelity’s holding was worth $19.6 million. As of the end of Aug. 2024, Fidelity says the value of their holding has dropped nearly 79% to $4.19 million. This estimate values X at $9.4 billion currently. As mentioned previously, Musk purchased the social media platform for $44 billion, much more than what the company is currently valued at according to Fidelity’s valuation.
According to the Washington Post, the eight largest investors in X have lost a combined $24 billion since Musk purchased the social media giant as of Sept. 1. Part of this decrease is linked to the fact that many advertisers are reluctant to work with X as they do not want their brand associated with some of the platform’s content. This includes brands such as Disney, Paramount, NBCUniversal, Comcast, Lionsgate, and Warner Bros. Discovery all paused their advertising on X after Musk publicly promoted an antisemitic conspiracy theory, which he has since apologized for, and then went on to tell the aforementioned advertisers — “go f**k yourself.”
In the 2024 election cycle, Elon Musk continuously used X to show support for and promote Republican nominee and former President Donald Trump. Now that Trump has won the race to the White House, he has rewarded Musk for his loyalty by naming him a co-lead, alongside entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, of the new “Department of Government Efficiency.” DOGE, the acronym a nod to the meme and Musk’s cryptocurrency Dogecoin, is set to “provide advice and guidance” and “drive large scale structural reform and create an entrepreneurial approach to Government never seen before,” according to Trump. It is likely that DOGE will act simply as an advisory board, as creating a new government agency would require an act of Congress. The future of DOGE is unclear to us as of right now, but we know that wherever the wind takes it, Musk will be at the forefront.
Elon Musk has previously been referred to as a real-life Tony Stark, beloved by Americans for his unique ideas and intelligence. Musk’s recent ventures, however, have faced mass scrutiny by the media. As the public’s opinion on the richest man in the world continues to flip-flop, with social media users trading in X for the platform Bluesky and no clear path yet set for DOGE, only time will tell what will become of Elon Musk and his endeavors.