Elon Musk Found Liable for Misleading Investors in Twitter Acquisition

A jury has found Elon Musk liable for defrauding investors by deliberately driving down Twitter’s stock price in the months leading up to his $44 billion acquisition of the social media company, now known as X. However, the jury absolved him of intentionally scheming to mislead investors.

The Verdict and Key Findings

The civil trial, held in San Francisco, centered on a class-action lawsuit filed before Musk took control of Twitter. Jurors were tasked with determining whether two tweets and comments made by Musk on a podcast in May 2022 constituted intentional fraud against Twitter shareholders who sold their shares based on his statements. Associated Press

After three days of deliberation, the nine-person jury determined that Musk was liable for misleading investors with two specific tweets, including one stating the Twitter deal was “temporarily on hold.” They found he did not mislead investors with a statement made on a podcast and did not intentionally “scheme” to defraud them.

Potential Damages

As a class-action case, the exact amount of damages Musk will have to pay to thousands of shareholders, including institutional investors, remains unclear, but is expected to be in the billions of dollars. The jury awarded shareholders between approximately $3 and $8 per stock per day. Associated Press

Background: Bots and the Acquisition

Much of the trial focused on Musk’s claims regarding the number of bot accounts on Twitter. He testified that Twitter had a significantly higher proportion of fake and spam accounts than the 5% disclosed in regulatory filings, using this as justification to attempt to withdraw from the purchase agreement. Associated Press

After initially attempting to back out of the deal, Twitter pursued legal action in Delaware to compel Musk to honor the original agreement. Just before the trial was scheduled to begin, Musk reversed course and agreed to proceed with the $44 billion acquisition.

The Transformation to X

Following the acquisition, Musk rebranded Twitter as X, changing the logo and URL from Twitter.com to X.com. Mashable This rebranding has been accompanied by numerous changes to the platform, including subscription fees and alterations to the verification system. Mashable

Musk’s Response and Financial Standing

As of March 21, 2026, Elon Musk’s net worth is estimated at approximately $814 billion, largely tied to his Tesla shares. Associated Press He has too publicly discussed the honesty of his AI, Grok, and its agents, stating they are programmed to avoid providing false information. X (formerly Twitter)