Don't know what direction Twitter will go in: CEO Parag Agrawal tells anxious employees
New York(PTI): Twitter's India-born CEO Parag Agrawal has told worried employees that he doesn't know what direction this company will go in once the whopping USD 44 billion deal, which will take the social media giant private, closes with new owner billionaire Elon Musk.
The remarks by Agrawal, who took over the helm of the social networking giant just five months ago, came during a meeting with Twitter employees on Monday afternoon after the company said it had accepted Musk's offer to buy it for about USD 44 billion.
It's important to acknowledge that all of you have many different feelings about what is happening, The New York Times newspaper quoted Agrawal as saying.
The American daily, which listened to the meeting, said that Agrawal told employees that he estimated the deal might take three to six months to complete.
In this moment, we operate Twitter as we always have," he said, adding that how we run the company, the decisions we make, and the positive changes we drive that will be on us, and under our control.
Uncertainty now hangs over the fate of Twitter employees, who voiced concern over layoffs in the wake of the acquisition by Musk.
The NYT report added that it is unclear how hands-on Musk plans to be at Twitter.
Among the unanswered issues are whom he might pick to lead the company and how involved he would be in running the service, it said, adding that Agrawal is expected to remain in charge at least until the deal closes.
The NYT report added that in the employee meeting, Agrawal acknowledged the uncertainty ahead.
Once the deal closes, we don't know what direction this company will go in, 37-year-old Agarwal said. Upon completion of the transaction, Twitter will become a privately held company.
The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the Twitter Board of Directors, is expected to close in 2022, subject to the approval of Twitter stockholders, the receipt of applicable regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.
On Monday, as Twitter Chairman Bret Taylor announced that Tesla and SpaceX founder Musk will acquire the company, Agrawal tweeted, Twitter has a purpose and relevance that impacts the entire world. Deeply proud of our teams and inspired by the work that has never been more important.
The NYT report said that in the meeting with Twitter employees, Agrawal and Taylor nodded to the emotions of the day and how workers were most likely processing the news of a sale.
Agrawal said compensation would remain largely the same under Musk but he did not make the same assurances about Twitter's policies and culture, the NYT report said.
Agrawal told employees that their stock options would convert to cash when the deal closes. Employees would receive their same benefits packages for a year after the deal was finalised, the NYT report said.
In response to a question about whether former President Donald Trump, who was permanently suspended from the social networking site in January 2021, would be allowed back on the platform, Agrawal said We constantly evolve our policies.
Following the acquisition, Musk, the world's wealthiest person, said, 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."
"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. Twitter has tremendous potential I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it," the 50-year-old Tesla CEO said.
The social media site's co-founder Jack Dorsey, who had stepped down in November last year, had declared that his trust" in Agrawal as our CEO is bone deep when he had named the India-born executive as Twitter's new CEO on November 29, 2021.
Dorsey had said that after almost 16 years at the company he had decided it was finally time for him to leave and the first reason he had given for why it was the right time for his departure was Parag becoming our CEO."
"The board ran a rigorous process considering all options and unanimously appointed Parag. He's been my choice for some time given how deeply he understands the company and its needs. Parag has been behind every critical decision that helped turn this company around. He's curious, probing, rational, creative, demanding, self-aware, and humble. He leads with heart and soul, and is someone I learn from daily. My trust in him as our CEO is bone deep," Dorsey had said.
Agrawal had said in a note posted on Twitter that he was honoured and humbled by his appointment and expressed gratitude to Dorsey's continued mentorship and your friendship.
An IIT Bombay and Stanford alumnus, Agrawal had joined Twitter 10 years ago when there were fewer than 1,000 employees.
While it was a decade ago, those days feel like yesterday to me. I've walked in your shoes, I've seen the ups and downs, the challenges and obstacles, the wins and the mistakes. But then and now, above all else, I see Twitter's incredible impact, our continued progress, and the exciting opportunities ahead of us, he had said in the post following his appointment.
Our purpose has never been more important. Our people and our culture are unlike anything in the world. There is no limit to what we can do together, he had said.
We recently updated our strategy to hit ambitious goals, and I believe that strategy to be bold and right. But our critical challenge is how we work to execute against it and deliver results - that's how we'll make Twitter the best it can be for our customers, shareholders, and for each of you.
The world is watching us right now, even more than they have before. Lots of people are going to have lots of different views and opinions about today's news. It is because they care about Twitter and our future, and it's a signal that the work we do here matters, Agrawal had said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
India & Israel elevate ties to special strategic partnership, vow to soon conclude free trade deal
Jerusalem (PTI): India and Israel on Thursday elevated their "time-tested" relationship to a special strategic partnership and agreed to soon firm up a "mutually beneficial" free trade deal even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly backed the Gaza peace initiative, asserting that humanity must never become a victim of conflict.
Following talks between Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, the two sides inked a plethora of agreements to expand cooperation in areas of trade, agriculture, energy, cyberspace and digital payment.
India and Israel also vowed to expand their already close defence partnership by working towards joint development and joint production of military hardware under the framework of the transfer of technologies.
In his media statement, Modi said India's security interest is linked to peace and stability in the Middle East, adding that New Delhi fully supports the Gaza Peace Initiative.
"India's stance is clear: humanity must never become a victim of conflict. A path to peace has been created through the Gaza Peace Plan. India has fully supported these efforts," he said.
"In the future as well, we will continue dialogue and cooperation with all countries," he said.
PM Modi landed in Israel on Wednesday on a two-day visit. It is his second visit to Israel in nine years.
In his remarks, the prime minister said India and Israel have a united view that there is no place for terrorism in the world and both sides stand shoulder-to-shoulder in countering terrorism and its supporters.
"Our relationship is founded on the strong bedrock of deep trust, shared democratic values, and human sensitivities. Our bond has stood the test of every trial of time," he said.
"Today, we have taken the historic decision to elevate our time-tested partnership to the status of a 'Special Strategic Partnership'," he said.
The prime minister also announced the establishment of an India-Israel critical and emerging technologies partnership to impart a new momentum for cooperation in areas of artificial intelligence, quantum, and critical minerals. "I am pleased that an agreement has been reached for the use of UPI in Israel," he said.
The prime minister, referring to the threat of terrorism, said India and Israel will continue to confront the menace unitedly.
"India and Israel are completely clear that there is no place for terrorism in the world. In any form, in any expression, terrorism cannot be accepted," he said.
"We have stood shoulder-to-shoulder in opposing terrorism and its supporters, and we will continue to do so," he added.
India and Israel also discussed the implementation of the India-Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and cooperation under the framework of I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-USA).
