Musk’s tweet follows criticism of Twitter, where he claimed the platform doesn’t allow for free speech.
“Given that Twitter serves as the de facto public town square, failing to adhere to free speech principles fundamentally undermines democracy,” Musk tweeted Friday. “What should be done?”
He then asked if a new platform is needed.
A 2018 agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission requires that Musk gain pre-approval from other Tesla executives prior to posting tweets about the company.
After Musk asked his Twitter followers in November if he should sell a 10% of his stake in Tesla, the electric vehicle company received a subpoena from the SEC because the poll question triggered a stock selloff — which the CEO has called “harassment.” .
Earlier this week, in response to Musk challenging the subpoena, an SEC regulator urged a federal judge to allow his tweets to continue to be scrutinized.
“Musk’s motion to quash is procedurally defective and substantively meritless,” the SEC said.
If he proceeds with launching a platform of his own, Musk would join a growing list of public figures and technology companies who are ditching established social media networks and creating their own platforms, often championing “free speech.” Former President Donald Trump, who has been banned from Twitter since January 2021, notably launched Truth Social in February as part of the Trump Media and Technology Group.
Rumble, Parler, Gettr and other services have also formed as alternatives to mainstream social networks. Parler was removed from Apple’s app store amid allegations that January 6 rioters used the platform to incite violence. It was reinstated in April after improvements were made by the company to better detect and moderate hate speech.
— Reuters and CNN’s Brian Fung contributed to this report
