The candidates who might take over at Twitter if Elon Musk steps down

2022-12-19

So, who will take over at Twitter now? As Elon Musk vows to obey public vote calling for his resignation, the likely (and left-field!) candidates who could replace him

Ten million Twitter users voted for Elon Musk to step down as CEO of the site
He insists he hasn’t decided on a replacement, but there are some contenders
Jason Calacanis, David Sacks and Lex Fridman are among the top choices
Wild card contenders include Edward Snowden, Oprah and Snoop Dogg

With pressure mounting on Elon Musk to abide by a public vote calling for him to step down at Twitter, attention is now turning to who could take over if he does indeed fall on his sword.

Musk asked his 122million Twitter followers if he should step down, and promised to abide by whatever they decided in a poll.

Of the 17.5million who cast votes, some 10million said he should resign.

He insisted he does not yet have a new CEO in mind – but there are some potential candidates whose names are being repeatedly suggested.

Musk asked his 122million Twitter followers if he should step down, and promised to abide by whatever they decided in a poll. Of the 17.5million who cast votes, some 10million said he should resign

Then, there are wild cards including Snoop Dogg who – despite his lack of corporate experience – seems to have won the vote of the public, 57 percent of whom said ‘yes’ when he asked if he should be crowned the next Twitter boss.

Oprah Winfrey, who Musk wanted to include on the Twitter board when he took over, is also an option, and even whistleblower Edward Snowden has thrown his hat into the ring.

Silicon Valley’s ‘Fix It’ team: Jason Calacanis, David Sacks and Sriram Krishnan who helped Musk when he bought Twitter

Among the most serious contenders is Jason Calacanis, who is considered one of Musk’s closest friends and allies.

After taking over Twitter in November and firing the majority of its existing leadership, Musk brought in his own close circle – and Calacanis was among them.

He has also previously expressed interest in the job, telling Musk in a text exchange: ‘Put me in the game coach! Twitter CEO is my dream job.’

But while Calacanis is confident he could fill Musk’s shoes, his Twitter followers feel differently.

Jason Calacanis (left) and David Sacks (right) were among the top advisors brought in by Musk when he bought Twitter, and their names lead the list of frontrunners to take over

Calacanis has been adding to speculation that he could be named as Musk’s replacement

In a recent poll asking who should take over as Twitter CEO in the event of Musk’s absence, only eight percent voted for Calacanis.

They were more enthusiastic about the prospect of him sharing the job with David Sacks – a member of the ‘PayPal mafia’ – whose professional relationship with Musk goes back decades.

Saks denied having an official role at Twitter during Musk’s initial takeover, but he admitted he was involved, tweeting: ‘I have no official role. I’m not “in charge” of anything.

‘I’m doing what investors try to do in Silicon Valley, which is be helpful at the margins.’

Another key member of Musk’s ‘fix it’ team is Sriram Krishnan – an angel investor and tech guru who has previously led engineering teams at Yahoo

Another key member of Musk’s ‘fix it’ team is Sriram Krishnan – an angel investor and tech guru who has previously led engineering teams at Yahoo.

Krishnan was touted as a potential next CEO by Fortune Magazine earlier this year, before Musk’s troubles had grown.

Alex Spiro: Musk’s trusty lawyer, who helped him through ‘pedo’ diver defamation trial and was part of Twitter negotiations

Spiro has worked with Musk since 2019, when he represented the eccentric billionaire in a messy defamation trial against Vernon Unsworth, a diver who Musk labeled a ‘pedo’ for trying to assist in the rescue of a group of Thai boys trapped in a cave.

Musk emerged victorious from that case – Unsworth had sued him for $190million, claiming the remark had a disastrous toll on his life.

The jury sided with Musk, thanks in no small part to Spiro.

Attorney Alex Spiro, in 2018. He represented Musk in his 2019 defamation trial against diver Vernon Unsworth

After offering to buy Twitter for the first time in April, Musk tried to back out of the deal.

Spiro was his adviser as he tried to wiggle out of the agreement.

He then ended up paying the original $44billion price.

Omead Afshar: Musk’s top lieutenant who was moved from Tesla to SpaceX

Omead Afshar was working in the ‘office of the CEO’, beneath Musk, until earlier this year when he was suddenly moved to SpaceX to work as Vice President

Ashfar is a strong contender given his history with Musk and his companies.

He was working in the ‘office of the CEO’, beneath Musk, until earlier this year when he was suddenly moved to SpaceX to work as Vice President.

There were rumors at the time that it was related to an expenses scandal at Tesla, which prompted others to be fired.

Tesla’s Tom Zhu

Musk brought Zhu from China, where he served as Tesla’s China President, to the US earlier this year.

China had routinely outperformed Tesla’s operational factories in the US, which analysts credited Zhu for.

He is a proponent of the ‘hardcore’ work ethic Musk favors.

Elon Musk with Tesla’s Tom Zhu. Zhu was brought over to the US this year from China, where he ran Tesla operations for years

Sheryl Sandberg: Facebook veteran COO who stepped down from Meta in June

Sandberg is another of the more serious names floating around to replace Musk.

She was widely credited for implementing the lucrative advertising structure that remains in place at Facebook, where she withstood multiple scandals before stepping down earlier this year.

Now, with Meta plunged into turmoil, Sandberg is yet to be snapped up for her next role.

Sheryl Sandberg stepped down as COO of Meta in June this year. She is pictured in November in New York

Sarah Friar, former CFO of Square with links to Slack, Nextdoor and Walmart

Friar has an impressive tech resume and is also financially experienced, having held senior positions a Square.

She sits on multiple boards, including those of Nextdoor, Slack and even Walmart.

She hasn’t weighed in on the Musk drama or on the possibility of taking over at Twitter.

Sarah Friar, former CFO of Square with links to Slack, Nextdoor and Walmart

Lex Fridman: Russian podcaster and AI specialist

Fridman has also offered to take over from Musk – but says he’ll do it for free.

In his offer, he tweeted: ‘Let me run Twitter for a bit. No Salary. All in.

‘Focus on great engineering and increasing the amount of love in the world.

Podcast host Lex Fridman also put himself forward for the job. His offer caught Musk’s eye

Fridman’s offer caught Musk’s eye – but was shot down yesterday

‘Just offering my help in the unlikely case it’s useful.’

Fridman’s offer caught Musk’s eye – but was shot down.

‘You must like pain a lot. One catch: you have to invest your life savings in Twitter and it has been in the fast lane to bankruptcy since May. Still want the job?’ he replied.

Undeterred, Fridman shot back: ‘Yes, we’ll turn it around.’

….And now for the wild cards!

Jared Kushner: Trump’s son-in-law who watched World Cup Final with Musk in Qatar

Kushner held a senior adviser role in his father-in-law’s White House, but has been keeping a low profile since Trump left office in 2021.

Jared Kushner and Elon Musk watch the World Cup Final in Qatar on Sunday

Trump formally announced his 2024 campaign earlier this year but his daughter Ivanka already confirmed she would have no role in a future administration.

It makes it all the more likely that Kushner could also seek a private role.

Snoop Dogg

The marijuana-loving rapper tossed his hat into the ring for Twitter CEO and received an overwhelmingly positive response.

Of 2.7million who voted, 81 percent said ‘yes’ when asked by the rapper ‘Should I run Twitter?’

Snoop Dogg The marijuana-loving rapper tossed his hat into the ring for Twitter CEO and received an overwhelmingly positive response

Oprah Winfrey

In leaked text messages before he took over, Musk had suggested bringing Oprah Winfrey onto the board at Twitter.

He was exchanging texts with her best friend, CBS anchor Gayle King, when he suggested bringing Oprah on board.

In leaked text messages before he took over, Musk had suggested bringing Oprah Winfrey onto the board at Twitter

‘Maybe Oprah would be interested in joining the Twitter board if my bid succeeds.

‘Wisdom about humanity and knowing what is right are more important than so-called “board governance” skills, which mean pretty much nothing in my experience,’ he said.

King had been trying to secure an interview with the Tesla CEO.

Edward Snowden

The whistleblower threw his hat into the ring on Twitter after Musk announced he would step down if the public wanted him to.

‘I take payment in Bitcoin!’ he tweeted in response to Musk claiming there was ‘no one’ who wanted the job that would actually be capable of it.

Snowden fled to Russia after being charged by the US for stealing documents from the NSA. He is now a naturalized citizen.

The whistleblower threw his hat into the ring on Twitter after Musk announced he would step down if the public wanted him to

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