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Business Insider
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Insider
Vox populi, vox dei — Elon Musk loves polling people on X. Here's a list of polls he's done, and what happened after.
Elon Musk announced the formation of his new political party a day after conducting a poll on his social media platform, X. But this isn't the first time Musk has outsourced his decision-making to social media. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO has conducted several polls on X over the years. Musk has asked users whether he should sell his Tesla stock or if he should reinstate President Donald Trump to the platform. Here's a list of some of the polls Musk has done, and what happened after. Selling 10% of his Tesla stock On November 7, 2021, Musk posted a poll on X asking his followers if he should sell 10% of his Tesla stock. "I will abide by the results of this poll, whichever way it goes," Musk added. Musk's poll received over 3.5 million votes, with over 57% of them supporting the sale of his stock. Then, on November 10, 2021, Tesla said in an SEC filing that Musk sold about $1.1 billion in Tesla stock. Much is made lately of unrealized gains being a means of tax avoidance, so I propose selling 10% of my Tesla stock. Do you support this? — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 6, 2021 In its filing, Tesla said the sale of Musk's shares was "automatically effected" as part of a trading plan that was adopted on September 14, 2021. It added that the trading plan was in relation to Musk exercising stock options that were set to expire in 2022. Musk had talked about the planned sale during an interview he gave at the Code Conference in September 2021. "I have a bunch of options that are expiring early next year, so a huge block of options will sell in Q4. Because I have to or they'll expire," he said. Buying Twitter Months before buying Twitter in late 2022, Musk conducted several polls on the platform, asking his followers about their views on it. These polls took place while Musk had been quietly purchasing the company's stock since the start of the year. On Mach 25, 2022, Musk asked his followers if Twitter "rigorously adheres" to the principle of free speech. "The consequences of this poll will be important. Please vote carefully," Musk added. Musk's poll received over 2 million votes. Over 70% of them said the platform did not adhere to the principle. Free speech is essential to a functioning democracy. Do you believe Twitter rigorously adheres to this principle? — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 25, 2022 "Given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy. What should be done?" Musk wrote in a follow-up post on March 26, 2022. "Is a new platform needed?" Musk added. Earlier, Musk had conducted a separate poll asking his followers if Twitter's algorithm should be open source. That poll received over 1.1 million votes, and nearly 83% of them voted "Yes." Then, on April 5, 2022, Musk asked his followers if they wanted an " edit button" on Twitter. The poll obtained over 4.4 million votes and nearly 74% of them voted "Yes." Musk eventually acquired Twitter for $44 billion in October 2022 and renamed it X in July 2023. Reinstating Trump's Twitter account Shortly after buying Twitter, Musk polled his followers on whether Trump should be reinstated to the platform. Trump had been an avid user of the platform but was banned in January 2021 after the Capitol riot. Musk's poll drew over 15 million votes, with nearly 52% supporting Trump's reinstatement. Reinstate former President Trump — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 19, 2022 "The people have spoken. Trump will be reinstated," Musk wrote on November 19, 2022, a day after he had conducted the poll. "Vox Populi, Vox Dei," Musk continued, using a Latin phrase that translates to "the voice of the people is the voice of God." Musk had talked about reinstating Trump even before his acquisition of Twitter was complete. In May 2022, Musk said in an interview with the Financial Times that would " reverse the permaban" on Trump, calling it a "morally bad decision" that was "foolish in the extreme." Stepping down as Twitter's CEO A month later, Musk conducted another poll, this time he asked his followers if he should step down as Twitter's CEO. "I will abide by the results of this poll," Musk wrote on December 18, 2022. Shortly after acquiring the platform, Musk laid off more than half of the company's employees. Musk's takeover also saw several celebrities such as Elton John opting to quit the platform over misinformation concerns. Musk's poll received over 17.5 million votes, and nearly 58% voted "Yes." Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2022 "I will resign as CEO as soon as I find someone foolish enough to take the job! After that, I will just run the software & servers teams," Musk wrote in a follow-up post on December 20, 2022. In May 2023, Musk announced that he had hired Linda Yaccarino, an executive at NBCUniversal as X's new CEO. Musk said Yaccarino would "focus primarily on business operations" while he dealt with "product design and new technology." Starting a new political party Musk's most recent poll took place on July 4, when he asked his followers if they wanted him to start a new political party. Musk had floated the idea of starting the America Party after criticizing Trump and the GOP for the " One Big Beautiful Bill." The poll received over 1.2 million votes, and over 65% of them voted "Yes." Independence Day is the perfect time to ask if you want independence from the two-party (some would say uniparty) system! Should we create the America Party? — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 4, 2025 "By a factor of 2 to 1, you want a new political party and you shall have it!" Musk wrote on X a day later. "When it comes to bankrupting our country with waste & graft, we live in a one-party system, not a democracy. Today, the America Party is formed to give you back your freedom," he added.
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Donald Trump Explains Why He Wants A 'Bidding War' For TikTok
President Donald Trump on Monday said he would welcome a 'bidding war' for TikTok as he appeared to confirm that Microsoft is among the companies that have declared interest in acquiring the popular social media platform. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One he has an affinity for bidding wars. 'I like bidding wars because you make the best deal,' he said, according to The Washington Post. 'So if we have a bidding war, that's a good thing.' Asked if Microsoft had taken part in talks about buying TikTok, Trump replied: 'I would say yes.' 'A lot of interest in TikTok,' he added. Microsoft has not commented on Trump's latest remarks. The U.S. tech giant made a bid to acquire the platform in 2020 after Trump first floated the idea of a forced divestiture citing national security concerns. In the end, TikTok decided to partner with Oracle after the two reached an agreement on the storage of U.S. user data. Speaking to tech journalist Kara Swisher at the Code Conference in 2021, Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella described the negotiations as 'the strangest thing I've ever sort of worked on.' Meanwhile, the president on Saturday denied an NPR report stating that Oracle and a group of outside investors were in talks with the White House about potentially acquiring the global operations of TikTok. 'No, not with Oracle,' he said. 'Numerous people are talking to me, very substantial people, about buying it, and I'd make that decision probably over the next 30 days.' But last week, Trump said he would be open to Oracle's founder and Chief Technology Officer Larry Ellison owning the platform. He said the same about his billionaire ally Elon Musk. Despite the apparent talks happening behind closed doors, TikTok's future in the U.S. is uncertain. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld legislation signed into law by former President Joe Biden that required TikTok divest its Chinese ownership by Jan. 19 to avoid a nationwide ban, citing national security concerns. In response to the ruling, TikTok decided to temporarily go offline in the U.S. before restoring service to its U.S. users after Trump committed to signing an executive order giving the company more time to comply with the legislation. Even though Trump followed through on his word, TikTok remains unavailable to download on U.S. app stores. Billionaire Frank McCourt and Perplexity AI have also made formal bids to acquire TikTok. In separate remarks made to House Republicans attending a GOP policy retreat in Doral, Florida, on Monday, Trump once again suggested that TikTok helped him win November's election. 'I have a little bias toward TikTok right now,' he said. Trump Claims He Will Decide The Fate Of TikTok 'Over The Next 30 Days' Stephen Colbert Exposes Trump's Truly Weird Claim About 'Young People' On TikTok You Won't Believe How Much iPhones With TikTok Installed Are Selling For Right Now
