Elon Musk: Twitter “Deal Cannot Move Forward” Until Platform Can Prove Bots Are Less Than 5% of Users

Billionaire Elon Musk tweeted early Tuesday morning that he won’t proceed with his $44 billion purchase of Twitter until the social media platform can prove bots are less than 5% of all users, yet another twist.

Twitter estimated in a recent SEC filing that fewer than 5% of monetizable daily active users (or mDAUs) in the first quarter were bots. Musk didn’t believe that figure and said, “Twitter’s CEO publicly refused to show proof of <5%.” 

Musk estimates about “20% fake/spam accounts, while 4 times what Twitter claims, could be *much* higher.” 

“My offer was based on Twitter’s SEC filings being accurate,” Musk tweeted. adding, “this deal cannot move forward until he does.”

20% fake/spam accounts, while 4 times what Twitter claims, could be *much* higher.

My offer was based on Twitter’s SEC filings being accurate.

Yesterday, Twitter’s CEO publicly refused to show proof of <5%.

This deal cannot move forward until he does.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 17, 2022

Twitter shares fell 2.5% premarket on Tuesday. Shares have tumbled into a bear market since the start of May as traders cast doubts on the deal.

Musk’s tweet comes after Twitter chief Parag Agrawal posted a lengthy thread about the company’s bot methodology. Musk replied with a poop emoji, followed by a tweet that asked: “So how do advertisers know what they’re getting for their money?”

So how do advertisers know what they’re getting for their money? This is fundamental to the financial health of Twitter.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 16, 2022

Meanwhile, Twitter filed a preliminary proxy statement with the SEC that said it’s “committed to completing the transaction on the agreed price [$54.20 per share in cash] and terms as promptly as practicable.”

At yesterday’s “All In” summit, Musk said that a viable deal for Twitter is “not out of the question,” but at a lower price.

Maybe Trump was right?