- Musk, 51, took over Twitter on Thursday night, finalizing a $44 billion deal to buy the social media company
- On Thursday night he fired many of the company’s top executives – among them the CEO, chief financial officer, head of legal, and general counsel
- Musk has said he aims to make Twitter a bastion of free speech and discussion, and to make the company more profitable
- His takeover, first rumored in April, has left staff shaken: on Saturday, The New York Times reported he is to begin layoffs as soon as today
- On November 1 employees were scheduled to receive stock grants as part of their compensation: Musk is believed to intend to preempt that