Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Wednesday, Oct 01, 2025

Elon Musk's $44 Billion Twitter Takeover Heads For Business School Case Study

Elon Musk's $44 Billion Twitter Takeover Heads For Business School Case Study

The chief executive of electric car maker Tesla Inc performed a U-turn by proposing to buy Twitter at the agreed price having spent months trying to get out of the deal.

Elon Musk's $44 billion Twitter takeover saga comes with all the drama necessary to be immortalised in case studies for future captains of industry, as the tycoon's on-off pursuit of the social media platform and unique management style make for a union like no other.

The chief executive of electric car maker Tesla Inc performed a U-turn by proposing to buy Twitter at the agreed price having spent months trying to get out of the deal, just as a Delaware Court was getting ready to rule on the standoff.

"This is unique in many cases," said Arturo Bris, Professor of Finance and Director of IMD World Competitiveness Center. "It is definitely a business school case study. Because it's about poison pills, breakup fees, lawsuits, hostility."

While there are examples of acrimonious or hostile takeovers such as AOL-Time Warner and Sanofi-Aventis-Genzyme, here the world's richest man - who has long used his own Twitter account to press for more freedom of speech - is working to impose his will on another corporation.

Musk's attempt to take over Twitter is "a gift to professors and students", said Joshua White, a professor at Vanderbilt University, calling the situation "unprecedented".

UNIQUE STYLE


"Frankly I hate doing mgmt stuff," Musk wrote in a text message to Twitter Chief Executive Parag Agrawal in the run up to making an offer for the company, according to legal documents related to the battle.

"I kinda don't think anyone should be the boss of anyone," he wrote, while another message noted he could "interface way better with engineers who are able to do hardcore programming than with program manager/MBA types".

While the messages reflect his unusual approach to running a business, taking control of Twitter will mean managing it, at least initially. Musk has said he would take the reins as CEO but only until he finds a new executive with expertise in the media industry.

"What is to come is unclear," said Donna Hitscherich, a Columbia Business School professor.

Musk did not respond to a request for comment on the challenges of running the company after such a contentious deal. Twitter declined to comment.

Academics and analysts say Musk should focus on restructuring the social media company's business model after second-quarter revenue dropped amid the court battle and a weakening digital advertising market.

Musk has hinted at wanting to turn Twitter into what he called an "everything app" like the wildly popular WeChat in China which offers everything from banking to chatting. That will be difficult, analysts said, especially in the United States where consumers are already well served by multiple services.

Whether or how Musk pulls it off is not known yet. What analysts and academics can agree on is that considerable energy and momentum could be sapped by what they forecast will be heavy turnover among Twitter's staff and senior management.

Musk spent months criticising the company's management and complaining about salaries, what he perceived as political bias and automated 'bot accounts' - of which he thinks there are many more than Twitter estimates.

Addressing employees directly in June, he said there needed to be "rationalisation of headcount and expenses" while stressing that staff, who currently have relatively free rein to choose where they work, should lean towards working in an office.

One thing is for sure: Musk is going to receive huge attention and scrutiny as he figures out how to run Twitter. Success or failure, it will be an instant business school classroom staple, experts say.

"I'm really, really looking forward to the end," said Bris. "So I can teach this case in class."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
UK, Canada, and Australia Officially Recognise Palestine in Historic Shift
Dubai Property Boom Shows Strain as Flippers Get Buyer’s Remorse
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
UAE-US Stargate Project Poised to Make Abu Dhabi a Global AI Powerhouse
Saudi Arabia cracks down on music ‘lounges’ after conservative backlash
Saudi Arabia Signs ‘Strategic Mutual Defence’ Pact with Pakistan, Marking First Arab State to Gain Indirect Access to Nuclear Strike Capabilities in the Region
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Kuwait opens bidding for construction of three cities to ease housing crunch.
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
×