New Delhi: A day after revealing that he has a 9.2 per cent stake worth about $3 billion in Twitter, Tesla CEO Elon Musk on Tuesday asked his more than 80 million followers if they wish to have an edit button on their tweets.
“Do you want an edit button?” Musk posted a poll.
Indian-origin Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal replied: “The consequences of this poll will be important. Please vote carefully”.
Twitter users have been demanding an edit button to correct their tweets for a long period of time.
The buzz over an edit button on Twitter resurfaced on April 1 when the micro-blogging platform said it was working on an edit button.
A user posted: “Under two conditions. It’s only available for a few minutes, 5-10 mins. And when an edit is made, there’s a small link that shows the edit. This keeps a public record but allows the tweeter the ability to fix a simple mistake and not re-notify their followers with a new tweet”.
Musk replied to the user: “That sounds reasonable”.
“Facebook gives me the willies (a nervous feeling),” he further posted, poking fun at Mark Zuckerberg.
Musk revealed his stake in Twitter after questioning Twitter’s commitment to free speech.
“Free speech is essential to a functioning democracy. Do you believe Twitter rigorously adheres to this principle?,” he tweeted.
“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 said, adding, “Is a new platform needed?”
Earlier, Tesla and SpaceX CEO who used Twitter for various reasons — from infuriating the US regulators with business-related tweets to making fun of world leaders — acquired 9.2 per cent shares worth nearly $3 billion in Agrawal-run platform.
The surprising news led Twitter stock surge nearly 23 per cent in pre-market trade.
The shares make Musk Twitter’s largest sole shareholder.