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Musk Says Twitter Deal ‘Should Go Ahead’ If Company Can Prove Its Accounts Are Real

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OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.


Tesla, Space X and Starlink CEO Elon Musk stunned the tech world when he decided he wanted to purchase Twitter, stunned them again when he said he wanted to back out of the deal, and now just stunned them again.

The CEO said that the Twitter deal should go ahead if the tech giant can provide proof of how it sampled 100 accounts and proved they are real.

It came in response to a tweet from cybersecurity and data analyst Andrea Stroppa who said “Clearly, from Twitter SEC filings, mDAU is the key metric. It is the key metric for its business rev. And its market value; mDAU is an ad hoc metric, created to protect Twitter’s interests. No competitor uses something similar.

“When @elonmusk requested more information about spam and fake accounts; Twitter provided a vague response. Then provided outdated data; Then offered a fake data set (not real “firehose”); Then provided a cleaned data set where they already suspended the malicious accounts,” she said.

“Good summary of the problem. If Twitter simply provides their method of sampling 100 accounts and how they’re confirmed to be real, the deal should proceed on original terms. However, if it turns out that their SEC filings are materially false, then it should not,” Musk responded.

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“I hereby challenge (Twitter CEO) @paraga to a public debate about the Twitter bot percentage. Let him prove to the public that Twitter has <5% fake or spam daily users!” he said.

Another Twitter user said, “I wonder what’s SEC doing here?! Are they even investigating these dubious claims that are made by Twitter? Ridiculous.”

To which Musk responded, “Good question, why aren’t they?”

Last month Musk responded to a lawsuit from Twitter with a lawsuit of his own.

The lawsuit was filed on Friday as part of the ongoing legal battle that has begun after he abandoned the $44 billion deal to purchase the company, The New York Post reported.

“The 164-page suit was filed under seal just before the judge-imposed 5 p.m. deadline, so its contents were not immediately visible to the public. Under court rules, a partially redacted version may be available next week,” the report said.

“I have reviewed the counterclaims and declare that the matter contained therein insofar as it concerns my acts and deeds is true, and insofar as it relates to the acts and deeds of any other person, I believe it to be true,” a filing that was signed by Musk said.

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Twitter spokesman Brian Poliakoff declined to comment on the countersuit.

J.B. Heaton, an investment researcher and former corporate attorney, told The Post that Musk’s countersuit was likely filed under seal because it includes information that Twitter shared with Musk under a non-disclosure agreement or other restrictions. 

It’s almost certainly because they are including facts that they have gained under an expectation of confidentiality from Twitter,” Heaton said. 

Delaware Court of Chancery Judge Kathaleen McCormick will likely make the two sides agree on a partially redacted version that could be released to the public within a week, according to Heaton.  

Twitter scored a major victory against Elon Musk as a judge granted its request for an expedited trial.

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It will be a five-day trial beginning in October. The company originally asked for a four-day trial in September to have Musk “honor his obligations,” Yahoo Finance reported.

Musk’s lawyers asked the court to delay the trial to February 2023. They claimed Twitter was in a sudden rush to complete a trial and force the acquisition following two months of alleged “foot-dragging and obfuscation” over requested data relating to bots and other fake accounts. Musk accused Twitter of underreporting the volume of bogus accounts (and failing to provide enough information) in a bid to clinch the deal. As part of the call for a delay, Musk’s lawyers also claimed they needed more time to search Twitter’s raw “firehose” data.

While Twitter didn’t get exactly what it wanted, the ruling is a clear victory for the social network. It won’t have to wait long to obtain a decision and may force Musk to rely primarily on the claims he made when he announced plans to back out of the purchase. There’s a chance Musk may have to continue with the buyout before the year is over, no matter how much he might regret making the offer.

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