Elon Musk said in a March 27th deposition that his posts on Twitter might have had a negative financial impact on the company over time. The deposition was made public on Monday by The Huffington Post.
Elon Musk admits his posts on X has harmed the company
In addition, Elon Musk acknowledged that he had a "limited understanding" of the lawsuit in which he was being deposed. Musk said, “I may have done more to financially impair the company than to help it, but I certainly I — I do not guide my posts by what is financially beneficial but what I believe is interesting or important or entertaining to the public.”
The remarks were made in response to a query from a lawyer about the use of X and a quote from the Tesla CEO's biography by Walter Isaacson. Elon Musk is cited by the author as saying, "I've shot myself in the foot so often, I ought to buy some Kevlar boots."
Ben Brody, 22, filed a defamation lawsuit against Elon Musk last fall, claiming the latter promoted a conspiracy theory that incorrectly claimed Brody was a participant in an altercation between two far-right organizations in Oregon. Musk's legal team repeatedly asked the judge to suppress the transcript of his nearly two-hour-long testimony, but the motion was turned down.
At one point, Mark Bankston, Brody's lawyer, questioned Musk about his acquisition of Twitter and how it had affected his platform use. In response, Musk said he thought his posts had "practically stayed the same before and after the acquisition." But he acknowledged that maintaining that attitude likely did X more harm than good.
Elon Musk has faced criticism ever since he purchased X in 2022
The company has reportedly lost many of its largest advertisers since Musk purchased Twitter in 2022. Also, Musk has come under fire for some of his posts on the platform, such as one in which he promoted the "great replacement" conspiracy theory, which is frequently propagated by white supremacists. The site experienced an increase in antisemitic and hate speech following Musk's takeover, and it has also reinstated several users who had been blocked for breaking the company's rules.
There are more signs that the value of X may have dropped for investors following Musk's acquisition. Fidelity reduced the value of its investment in Musk's social media business in February, indicating that since Musk paid $44 billion for the platform, X's valuation had decreased by 73%.
Musk has thought back on his posting patterns before. Musk stated on social media last year that he needed to give up posting in the early hours of the morning.