Everything you need to know about Twitter' s first day under Elon Musk

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Everything you need to know about Twitter' s first day under Elon Musk

, author of Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios The world shifted last night as completed his . Why it matters: One of the most influential communication platforms is now in the hands of an unpredictable leader. Catch up quick: The nearly ended Thursday night, a day before today’s court-ordered deadline.Musk had met briefly with a at Twitter’s headquarters on Wednesday, after notably into the lobby.On Thursday night, Twitter staffers began to hear details, , that the deal had closed and top executives had been fired.That includes , CFO Ned Segal, general counsel Sean Edgett and Vijaya Gadde — the company’s head of legal, policy and trust who was involved in banning former President Trump. The big picture: Despite in the past, Musk has himself CEO of Twitter, for now, and he's expected to make . His handling of account suspensions is the most anticipated.Musk has said he intends to and believes in making Twitter a , raising concerns over increased hate speech and divisiveness.Musk also announced today that Twitter will form a and that “no major content decisions or account reinstatements” will happen before it convenes, before also , “Anyone suspended for minor & dubious reasons will be freed from Twitter jail.” Reality check: Advertising makes up nearly all of Twitter's revenue, and advertisers are watching closely for Musk's next moves.General Motors on Friday it's temporarily suspending paid ads on Twitter while it gets a feel for "the direction of the platform under their new ownership."Musk has been conscious of , and wrote to advertisers on Thursday that "Twitter obviously cannot become a free-for-all ." What to watch: Musk is essentially fulfilling the role of a private equity company, Bloomberg corporate credit reporter Paula Seligson noted this morning during a conversation.If he acts like one, he'll have to significantly cut costs and grow revenue, she noted.Twitter's debt load has grown from about $2 billion to more than $13 billion, with an annual interest expense of $1.2 billion going forward, more than 12x what it is now, according to Seligson. The bottom line: In order for Musk to make Twitter successful, and to grow its value in order to one day sell it again back to public investors — it’s in his interest to keep content “” for advertisers.It is vital they stick around to fund his vision for Twitter, which could be a form of a . Go deeper:

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