Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey lamented that he may have made poor decisions that led to Elon Musk’s purchase of the company amid backlash to Musk’s widespread job cuts.
“Folks at Twitter past and present are strong and resilient,” Dorsey wrote on his personal Twitter account. “They will always find a way no matter how difficult the moment.”
“I realize many are angry with me,” he continued. “I own the responsibility for why everyone is in this situation: I grew the company size too quickly. I apologize for that.”
Elon Musk completed his purchase of Twitter last month and quickly started a series of layoffs that he deemed necessary due to alleged losses of $4 million per day. Musk dissolved the company’s board of directors and made himself the company’s sole director and new CEO, with other top executives resigning.
Musk then set out to lay off roughly half the company’s workforce, which started out with around 7,500 people.
Jack Dorsey, the creator, co-founder, and chairman of Twitter and co-founder & CEO of Square, speaks on stage at the Bitcoin 2021 Convention on June 04, 2021, in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Dorsey appeared to remain silent while Musk set to work gutting the company, prompting a number of journalists and even some former employees to question why he had remained so “quiet” while watching his legacy come apart.
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Former Twitter social gaming lead, who posts under the name Shiraz, wrote on Twitter that Dorsey was “pretty quiet or what.”
Morning Brew’s Jack Abbleby noted that Dorsey was “awful quiet over there,” as did Korea Herald features writer Hyunsu Yim.
Ed Zitron, a former Insider and Atlantic writer, jokingly asked if Dorsey had gone into witness protection. “How in the world is he still quiet?” Zitron wrote on Twitter.
Elon Musk speaks at meeting in Norway
Tesla CEO Elon Musk smiles as he addresses guests at the Offshore Northern Seas 2022 (ONS) meeting in Stavanger, Norway on Aug. 29, 2022. (Photo by Carina Johansen / NTB / AFP/ Getty Images / Getty Images)
The Financial Times noted that Dorsey had “rolled his entire stake of Twitter shares, worth nearly $1 billion at the buyout price of $54.20, into the privately-held company he founded, which is now controlled by Elon Musk.”
But the Times also highlighted the long-running “bromance” between Musk and Dorsey, which may have played a role in prompting Musk to pursue his bid.
Dorsey had previously admitted he tried to bring Musk on to the board of directors, but the other members refused because they were too “risk averse.”
Dorsey tweeted at the time of Musk’s initial bid that “Elon is the singular solution I trust. I trust his mission to extend the light of consciousness” before leaving the company.
