Musk’s “chainsaw” approach to Twitter won’t work: Chris Kelly

Chris Kelly, an early investor in SpaceX, is “largely an Elon fan,” but said strategies that worked at Musk’s other companies aren’t being implemented at Twitter. Kelly made the comments on Big Ideas Live, a Sky News event that took place in London on Saturday.

“He’s able to do some pretty amazing things, but has ventured into an area that is way beyond his knowledge and believes that a bullying management culture can change that – and that’s not going to work in a company like Twitter.” ‘ Kelly said. “I’ve certainly seen some Elon driving management moves at Tesla and SpaceX, but I’m surprised this was the approach. He should have been much more measured with the takeover.”

Kelly’s opinion was echoed by Dex Hunter-Torricke, a former SpaceX communications chief who now advises on moderation as part of Meta Facebook’s oversight board.

“Making very quick, on-the-fly content policy decisions is probably not the way to go,” Hunter-Torricke told Sky News.

Musk wasted no time in making major changes to Twitter following his $44 billion acquisition of the social network. He quickly laid off top executives and then about half of the company. He awkwardly asked some of those who had been released to return after realizing they were still needed.

On Wednesday, Musk sent an email to all Twitter employees telling them to be “extremely hardcore” and to work “long hours at high intensity.” He then said the staff could either agree or leave. Those on board were asked to express their interest via a link included in the email by Thursday evening. By Friday, it turned out that between 1,000 and 2,000 employees hadn’t clicked “yes.”

Meanwhile, changes Musk has made to the platform have caused uproar from businesses, lawmakers, and celebrities, among others.

Many companies have suspended advertising on Twitter over concerns that hateful content will increase under Musk, a self-proclaimed “free speech absolutist.”

Some companies, including drugmaker Eli Lilly and defense contractor Lockheed Martin, fell victim to Musk’s Twitter verification fiasco, which allowed pranksters to impersonate the companies. That was thanks to a new $8 monthly subscription service that made every account look “verified.” Twitter paused the service days after it launched, and the relaunch isn’t expected until later this month.

“Elon is willing to try many things – many will fail, some will succeed,” said Esther Crawford, a Twitter contributor who worked on the verification overhaul. “The goal is to find the right mix of successful changes to ensure the long-term health and growth of the business.”

But Kelly believes Musk’s style will hurt the company in the long run, saying at today’s event, “The massive cuts and chainsaw that Elon Musk has wrought on the company doesn’t bode well for its future.”

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