
A year ago, Elon Musk, the space titan and Tesla mastermind, decided to conquer a new frontier: social media.
The billionaire took over Twitter, rebranding it to ‘X’, and the ride has been nothing short of a rollercoaster.
Buckle up as we unveil the hidden truths and turbulence behind this audacious takeover.
Blowing a whopping $44 billion in 2022 to snatch Twitter, you’d expect it to flourish, right?
Think again.
By Elon’s own admission, the value plunged to a jaw-dropping $20 billion this March.
Ouch.
Web traffic stats further sent shockwaves.
In a single year, global visits nosedived 14%, and it’s even worse for advertisers: a staggering 17% plunge, says Similarweb, the data watchdog.
Compare that to a mere 3.7% drop in the top 100 social hubs, and the gap is clear.
Now, before you think it’s just X, hold on.
Musk waged a war on bots, which might explain some traffic loss.
But here’s the spicy bit: X brags of 1.5 million daily sign-ups and a colossal 500 million monthly users.
Yet, SimilarWeb throws shade with a figure of just 75 million for September.
Who to believe?
As X reels, Meta’s smelling opportunity.
Their new microblogging baby, Threads, seeks to woo the exodus from X.
Mark Zuckerberg claims a healthy under 100 million users, though numbers, as ever, are slippery to pin down.
But if you think Musk’s shaking in his boots, think again.
For him, X’s not just a Twitter replacement – it’s the next ‘everything app,’ echoing Asian giants like WeChat.
Believe it or not, insiders spill that Musk is eyeing the crowns of YouTube and LinkedIn.
Bold?
Yes.
Crazy?
Time will tell.
He’s even dipping his toes into live video and game streaming à la Twitch.
But can he truly dethrone YouTube’s monstrous 31.9 billion monthly visits?
Or LinkedIn’s imposing 950 million members?
The odds look long.
Here’s the kicker: advertisers have been bailing on X in droves since Musk’s takeover.
A staggering 60% decline in U.S. ad revenue makes for grim reading.
Yet, enter Linda Yaccarino, the ad queen Musk’s betting on to woo back big brands.
Early signs are promising, with 1,700 advertisers – including 90 top spenders – trickling back.
The million-dollar question?
How deep are their pockets now?
Not one to be outshone, Musk’s playing his own game, luring premium users with shiny new subscription tiers to X Premium.
Numbers?
Hush-hush for now.
As the dust settles on year one, it’s clear: Musk’s X is a world away from mounting a serious challenge to the social media big leagues.
But knowing Musk, he’s just warming up.