DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Elon Musk is now working out of Twitter headquarters, thanks employees for long hours
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

On Friday, Twitter 's new owner Elon Musk sent a companywide email to employees of the social media giant thanking them for working long hours since he took over on Oct. 28. Two current Twitter employees told CNBC that they were fielding calls from colleagues and clients about all the changes to the platform. Two employees told CNBC that they have not gotten formal guidance from the company's human resources department on remote work. This week, Musk told Twitter employees that he was reversing the company's previous "work from home forever" policy which had been enacted by his personal friend and collaborator, former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. Here's the e-mail from Elon Musk to Twitter employees on Friday, transcribed by CNBC:

An image of new Twitter owner Elon Musk is seen surrounded by Twitter logos in this photo illustration in Warsaw, Poland on 08 November, 2022. "We are tracking recent developments at Twitter with deep concern," an FTC spokesperson said in a statement. Since then, other executives have announced their departures, including most recently Chief Information Security Officer Lea Kissner. According to internal communications obtained by CNBC, three execs involved in information security, privacy and compliance all resigned in recent days, including Kissner. Under that order, Twitter agreed to install an enhanced privacy program and information security program with specific requirements.

In his first companywide email to Twitter employees, new owner and CEO Elon Musk said he was ending the social network's "work from home forever" policy. He also warned employees that the company might not survive the economic downturn without significant subscription revenue. From: Elon Musk [email removed] Date: Nov 9, 2022 [time stamp removed] To: Team Sorry that this is my first email to the whole company but there is no way to sugarcoat the message. We are also changing Twitter policy such that remote work is no longer allowed unless you have a specific exception. Thanks, ElonWATCH: Twitter is now Elon Musk's company — Here's how experts responded to the news

☆ Elon Musk tells Twitter staff he sold Tesla stock to save the social network
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Twitter's new owner Elon Musk, who is also CEO of electric vehicle maker Tesla and U.S. defense contractor SpaceX, told employees of the social media business on Thursday that he recently sold shares of Tesla to "save Twitter." He made the remarks during an all-hands meeting that he hosted in part to motivate Twitter employees who remain after sweeping layoffs to work hard. Musk let go of about half of Twitter employees following his acquisition of the company for $44 billion, or $54.20 per share. As CNBC previously reported, to finance his portion of that take-private deal, last week Musk sold at least another $3.95 billion worth of Tesla stock. Earlier this year, he also sold over $8 billion worth of Tesla stock in April and roughly $7 billion worth in August.

☆ Elon Musk sells at least $3.95B of Tesla shares after Twitter takeover
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

Elon Musk sold $3.95 billion worth of shares in his electric car company Tesla after closing his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter. According to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Musk sold 19.5 million shares of Tesla. On August 9, 2022, Musk told fans he was done selling shares to fund a possible Twitter take-private deal. Since he has taken over Twitter, Musk has pulled dozens of Tesla engineers in to assist him at Twitter with code review and other work. Please check back for updates.

☆ President Biden says Elon Musk's relationships with other countries are worth looking into
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

In this article TSLATWTR Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTJoe Biden, left, and Elon Musk Evelyn Hockstein | Reuters; Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesAsked on Wednesday whether Tesla , SpaceX and Twitter CEO Elon Musk posed a threat to national security, President Joe Biden said that the centi-billionaire's "relationships with other countries is worthy of being looked at." Biden said, "Elon Musk's cooperation and/or technical relationships with other countries is worthy of being looked at. Throughout 2022, Musk has accused the President of ignoring his electric vehicle venture, Tesla, despite its success, and favoring legacy automakers and their unions. The kingdom of Qatar also participated in Musk's Twitter deal. The Ukrainian government, which generally praises SpaceX and Musk, is now looking for alternatives to Starlink, Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said last Thursday.

☆ Tesla sinks to almost two-year low on Elon Musk stock sales, Twitter distraction
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

According to an analysis by Ben Silverman, Director of Research for Verity, Musk's latest Tesla stock sales were very well-timed. Verity's InsiderScore notes that Musk had 267.6 million shares of Tesla pledged as collateral for personal indebtedness as of Mar. Musk still owns 445.6 million Tesla shares and holds exercisable options for 177.3 million more Tesla shares at $23.34, as well as some smaller tranches of options. Musk sold $8.5 billion worth of Tesla shares at $294.36 per share in April and $6.9 billion worth of his stock at $289.79 per share. Late last year, Musk sold $6.6 billion worth of Tesla shares at $357.23.

☆ Elon Musk reverses course, kills new 'official' designation for big-name tweeters
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

In his latest series of changes to Twitter's verification system, Twitter owner Elon Musk said he has already "killed" the new "official" designation Wednesday that had started rolling out for some of the platform's biggest names earlier in the day. Some originally verified accounts would sport an "official" label, Crawford said, while any user who pays $7.99 per month for Twitter Blue, the company's subscription product, would sport a blue check mark. Musk himself has benefited from having the Twitter verification check mark. In a tweet Wednesday, Musk wrote, "Blue check will be the greatest leveler." Under Musk's direction, the new Twitter Blue check mark will instead work as a paying subscriber badge that the company nonetheless plans to call "verification."

☆ Elon Musk sells at least $3.95 billion worth of Tesla shares after Twitter deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Elon Musk has sold at least another $3.95 billion worth of shares in his electric car company Tesla after closing his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter. According to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission published Tuesday, Musk sold 19.5 million more shares of Tesla. Musk sold almost $22 billion worth of Tesla shares in 2021, a year when the stock jumped over 50%. This year, he sold over $8 billion worth of Tesla stock in April and another roughly $7 billion worth in August. On Aug. 9, Musk told fans he was done selling Tesla shares to fund a possible Twitter acquisition.

☆ Twitter exec says there will soon be three types of accounts: official, paid, and unlabeled
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Some originally verified accounts will soon sport an "official" label, she said, while any user who pays $7.99 per month for Twitter Blue, the company's subscription product, will sport a blue checkmark. Musk himself has benefitted from having the Twitter verification checkmark. Under Musk's direction, the new Twitter Blue checkmark will instead work as a paying subscriber badge that the company nonetheless plans to call "verification." "The new Twitter Blue does not include ID verification – it's an opt-in, paid subscription that offers a blue checkmark and access to select features. "Not all previously verified accounts will get the 'Official' label and the label is not available for purchase.

☆ Elon Musk bans impersonation without parody label on Twitter raising questions about free speech commitment
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Muhammed Selim Korkutata | Anadolu Agency | Getty ImagesAfter several celebrity and blue-check verified Twitter users changed their accounts to mimic the social network's new owner Elon Musk, he called for a swift change to policy enforcement. Musk wrote on Sunday that, moving forward, Twitter will now permanently suspend impersonators' accounts without warning if they are not clearly labeled as parody. In May, after he agreed to buy Twitter, Musk argued against lifetime bans and said he would reverse one on Donald Trump. The platform would not usually jump to a permanent ban of a user's account for impersonation prior to Musk's takeover. Twitter and Elon Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment or confirmation as to whether Sommer and Griffin were permanently banned.

☆ Twitter co-founder Dorsey apologizes for growing the company 'too quickly' in wake of mass layoffs
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey addresses students during a town hall at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in New Delhi, India, November 12, 2018. Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey apologized Saturday for growing the company "too quickly," a day after the company laid off approximately half of its employees under new owner Elon Musk. They will always find a way no matter how difficult the moment," Dorsey wrote in a tweet. Twitter's reduction in force extended beyond California, and CNBC could not immediately confirm whether Musk's description is accurate. Dorsey stepped down as Twitter's CEO last year and has since shifted his focus to solely managing his payments company Block, formerly known as Square.

☆ Twitter cut more than 950 California employees after Elon Musk took over, WARN notice shows
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

According to the letters from Twitter, shared by the California Employment Development Department, Twitter notified affected employees on Nov. 4. This kind of arrangement may serve as "payment in lieu of notice," in California depending on specific terms of employment. At the company's satellite locations in Santa Monica, Twitter cut approximately 93 employees including 17 mid-level officials and managers, 66 professionals and 10 combined sales and administrative support workers, the WARN notice showed. At a San Jose office, Twitter cut approximately 106 employees, including one executive or senior-level official or manager, 18 mid-level officials and managers, 85 professionals and two administrative support workers, according to the WARN notice. Shannon Liss-Riordan, a worker's rights attorney representing the terminated Twitter employees, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

☆ Tesla stock has dropped more than 35% since Elon Musk first said he'd buy Twitter
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

(Photo by Gotham/Getty Images)Since Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced his bid to buy social network Twitter , shares in his electric vehicle maker have dipped by more than 35%, and closed down just 3.6% for the day on Friday, amid a market rally that followed a volatile week. Musk first announced he had agreed to buy Twitter on April 25, 2022. Tesla shares closed that day at $332.67, and closed today at $207.47 capping his first full week of Twitter ownership. He has not said who, if anyone, may replace him as Twitter CEO, although he has told followers on Twitter that his position as sole director and CEO of the social network is temporary. Musk's ownership of the social network has caused some automakers, including GM and Audi, to pause ad spending there.

☆ Elon Musk says Twitter has had 'massive' revenue drop as advertisers pause spending
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Annie Palmer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Elon Musk, Founder and Chief Engineer of SpaceX, speaks during the Satellite 2020 Conference in Washington, DC, United States on March 9, 2020. Twitter has suffered a "massive drop in revenue" because of advertisers pausing advertising on the social media platform, Elon Musk, the new owner of the company, said Friday. In recent days, a number of companies said they would temporarily pause their advertising spending on Twitter to see how things would change there under Musk's ownership. Tesla competitors General Motors and Audi, and food titan General Mills are among the companies that have paused Twitter spending after Musk completed his $44 billion acquisition on October 28. Ad giant IPG advised clients to temporarily pause their Twitter media plans as well.

☆ Here's how Twitter and Elon Musk can prevent racist 'raids' on the social network
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

In this photo illustration, the image of Elon Musk is displayed on a computer screen and the logo of twitter on a mobile phone in Ankara, Turkiye on October 06, 2022. When Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took over at Twitter, showing up at headquarters on Oct. 27, 2022, online trolls and bigots raided the social network, polluting it with a deluge of racist epithets and other hate speech. Their campaign was waged across myriad social platforms including Twitter and Reddit, and manifested in real world rape and death threats, and a bomb scare targeting the critic. Some people engage in so-called "inauthentic" activity on social networks just to see if they can get away with it ("for the lulz"). NCRI uses sophisticated machine learning software and systems to monitor huge amounts of social network content, and to track rising hatred and threats against marginalized groups online, including Black, Jewish, Hindu and Muslim people.

☆ Twitter reportedly ready to cut about 3,700 employees
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Twitter employees are expecting a 50% overall reduction in force after Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took the reins of the social network last week. Gracias is a long-time investor in Musk's other companies, including SpaceX and Tesla, and was a Tesla board member. A calendar item for the reduction in force related meeting was made widely visible, possibly accidentally, to employees at Twitter on their internal systems. As CNBC previously reported, Musk quickly brought many trusted advisors and employees from his other companies into Twitter to advise him on next steps after the deal closed last week. After acquiring Twitter for $44 billion last week, Musk is scrambling to improve margins, including by slashing headcount and operating expenses and finding new ways to generate revenue.

☆ Twitter tells worried employees their vested shares will be paid in coming days
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

After Elon Musk closed his $44 billion purchase of Twitter last week, employees at the company braced for job cuts. Some told CNBC they were worried about losing their equity compensation if Musk sent them packing before their shares vested the first week of November. Musk and Tesla have been sued repeatedly over employees' claims that they were fired just before their shares vested, depriving them of compensation. However, it appears that the current tranche of stock-based compensation for many Twitter employees, who were there before Musk took over, will get paid out after all. The former Tesla employees won, but the electric vehicle maker was able to overturn the decision later on appeal.

☆ Ad giant IPG advises brands to pause Twitter spending after Musk takeover
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Twitter logo is seen on a mobile device in ths illustration photo in Warsaw, Poland on 30 October, 2022. Twitter is losing its most active users according to research done by Reuters. Advertising giant Interpublic Group has recommended that clients of its IPG Media Brands agencies suspend all paid advertising on Twitter for at least a week following Elon Musk's $44 billion acquisition of the social media network. Yoel Roth, head of safety at Twitter, has posted several threads to Twitter discussing how the company is combating this. Finchem called upon Musk personally for help in a tweet, and Musk said in a reply on Twitter that he was "looking into" the matter.

☆ Elon Musk lays out his ideas for Twitter's new verification system
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

In this photo illustration a Twitter logo seen displayed on a smartphone screen with Elon Musk Twitter in the background in Athens, Greece on October 30, 2022. Elon Musk laid out a series of ideas Tuesday for a new user verification process for Twitter, which he recently acquired for $44 billion. In a thread of tweets, Musk criticized the current system, which gives a blue check mark, or verification, to notable users like politicians, members of the press, executives and other people and organizations. Musk said he will give "power to the people" by offering verification through Twitter Blue for $8 a month. The Tesla CEO also said Twitter Blue subscribers will be given a "paywall bypass" for publishers that are willing to work with the social media platform.

☆ Elon Musk has pulled more than 50 Tesla employees into his Twitter takeover
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Nurphoto | Nurphoto | Getty ImagesNew Twitter owner Elon Musk has pulled more than 50 of his trusted Tesla employees, mostly software engineers from the Autopilot team, into his Twitter takeover, CNBC has learned. At Twitter, Musk is counting on his lieutenants and loyalists to decide who and what to cut or keep at the social network. It is not immediately clear how Tesla employees are expected to split their schedules between the automaker and Twitter. Typically, when Tesla employees work for other Elon Musk ventures, usually SpaceX or the Boring Company, they can get paid by the other venture as a consultant. Employees say Musk wants that work done by the first week of November.

As is normal course of business with a significant change in a media platform, we have temporarily paused our paid advertising. The Detroit automaker, a rival to Musk's Tesla , said it is "pausing" advertising as it evaluates Twitter's new direction . It will continue to use the platform to interact with customers but not pay for advertising, GM added. DETROIT — General Motors is suspending its advertising on Twitter following Elon Musk's takeover of the social media platform, the company told CNBC on Friday. Musk has long boasted that Tesla does not pay for traditional advertising, a cost that has added up for conventional automakers' brands through the years.

☆ Elon Musk plans Twitter content moderation council as questions about Trump return loom
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

After closing a $44 billion transaction to take Twitter private, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk — now the de facto CEO of Twitter — announced that he plans to form a "content moderation council" at the social networking company. He says he will not make any "major content decisions" or reinstate any accounts that were previously banned before the council convenes. Twitter rival Facebook has been roundly criticized for using a council approach to making content moderation decisions. Early in the Trump presidency, Musk served on a White House economic advisory board and a manufacturing jobs initiative council. The former president previously said he would not return to the platform, but that could change now that the company is run by Musk.

[Editor's note: After CNBC published details of an interview with people who claimed to be fired employees of Twitter, several reports emerged suggesting it was a hoax. On Elon Musk's first day in control of Twitter , a person who walked out of the company's San Francisco headquarters and identified themselves as a data engineer there said they were just laid off. One employee at Twitter, awaiting information about layoffs or projects, told CNBC they were in the dark for the most part. Twitter has denied that and went to court to try to get Musk to complete the deal. The judge gave Musk until Friday at 5 p.m. to close the deal, or else set a new trial date.

☆ Elon Musk carried a sink into Twitter on Wednesday as deal nears close
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Elon Musk arrives at the In America: An Anthology of Fashion themed Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, New York, May 2, 2022. Musk has until 5 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday to complete his deal to buy Twitter or again face the proposition of going to trial. A Delaware Chancery Court judge set the Friday deadline after Musk said he would be willing to buy Twitter after all. The judge ended up postponing the original trial set for last week and gave the parties until the end of this week to close to deal, or else she would set new trial dates for November. WATCH: How Elon Musk's Twitter takeover plans shook Wall Street and social media

Search resuls for: "Lora Kolodny"

25 mentions found