Did Elon Musk Buy Twitter Instead Of Solving World Hunger?
Erm, did Elon Musk just buy Twitter instead of solving world hunger? Well, that's the rumor going around right now after Musk secured a deal to buy the social media site. As you've probably heard by now, the entrepreneur dropped an eye watering $44 billion to buy the popular platform, per CNN, after he previously expressed how important he found the site to be for free speech. Amid much speculation about if Musk's proposition to buy Twitter would actually go through, he confirmed on Twitter (duh! Where else?) that the company had agreed to his offer and he will be the proud owner of the bird logo outlet when the deal is officially finalized in a few months time.
"Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated," Musk wrote in a statement. "I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans," he continued. Musk noted that he believed the site "has tremendous potential" and shared his excitement to get started and work with Twitter's users. The announcement so far has a staggering over 2.2 million likes.
But while we know how much moolah the entrepreneur put into his latest venture, speculation is rife that he could have put all that cash to better use.
Bold claims
After it was announced that Elon Musk will be the proud new owner of Twitter, users of the social media site began to turn their attention to the staggering amount he paid for it and mused about if that money could have gone to better use. The account of political podcast "No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen" appeared to get the ball rolling, tweeting in a message that went viral shortly after the news of Musk's latest venture was announced, "Elon Musk told the United Nations he would give them $6 billion to end world hunger if they showed him a detailed plan of how they would use the money. They called his bluff and gave him their plan— and then they never got the money. Now he's buying Twitter for $45 billion." In a second tweet, the account provided a link to The World Food Programme's plan from November 2021, which asked for $6.6 billion from the world's billionaires in order to feed what it estimated would be 42 million people for a year.
But not everyone was convinced. One Twitter user responded to the viral tweet, "This is a lie. He said they had to describe their plan in the thread and agree to open source accounting, so he actually called their bluff." However, a tweet from Executive Director for the UN World Food Programme, David Beasley, in October 2021 appeared to confirm the company was in fact offering transparent expenditure.
How much would it take to solve world hunger?
While it's been reported that around a $6 billion donation from Elon Musk could have done a lot to solve world hunger, it's also been estimated that truly putting a stop to people going hungry across the world would cost even more than Musk has to spend right now. A 2021 study backed by the German government found that solving the huge issue by 2030 would actually cost around $330 billion, which is around $65 billion more than Forbes estimates Musk's net worth to be as of April 26.
But that didn't stop several other tweets calling out the businessman from going viral on his newly purchased social media site. "Remember like two weeks ago when Elon was like 'tell me how to end world hunger and I'll do it' and then he bought twitter for $44 billion instead," one person wrote, while another tweeted, "Elon Musk to everyone: 'screw world hunger, I'm buying Twitter.'" However, others had the businessman's back, with some pointing out that Musk can do whatever he likes with his own cash.
Others speculated about what Twitter's former owners would do with their incredible newfound wealth. "Elon Musk just gave $44 billion dollars to the former owners of Twitter that they can now use to end hunger, disease, poverty, war, and injustice. Which they will do first?" one Twitter user asked.
What's next for Twitter?
As the world speculates about where Twitter will go next, it could be a few famous faces short under Elon Musk's supervision. After it was confirmed that the one-time "Saturday Night Live" host had purchased the website, "The Good Place" star Jameela Jamil was one of those who vowed to step away from her account in protest. "One good thing about Elon buying twitter is that I will *FINALLY* leave and stop being a complete menace to society on here. So it's win win for you all really," she wrote alongside a crying laughing face. Rob Reiner also voiced his concern about the takeover, questioning if former President Donald Trump would be allowed back on the site after being infamously banned in 2021.
But not everyone is planning to leave the social media site. In fact, Twitter shares were actually paused on April 25 as rumors of Musk's offer being accepted spread like wildfire across the internet, per BBC News. That came after shares jumped an impressive 5% that morning as everyone was talking about what was next for the business.
As for what Musk actually does with Twitter? Well, we're just going to have to wait and see.