Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal Breaks Silence, Expects Musk Deal to go Through but ‘Prepared for all Scenarios’ After Executive Shakeup

After over two weeks of Twitter silence, the “lame-duck” CEO of the platform, Parag Agrawal, issued a Twitter thread yesterday.

It was announced yesterday that two Twitter executives, Kayvon Beykpour, head of consumer product, and Bruce Falck, revenue product lead, are leaving the company while a hiring freeze is being put in place.

Additionally, Musk tweeted that the deal for him to acquire Twitter was “on hold.”

Agrawal began by declaring, “A lot has happened over the past several weeks. I’ve been focused on the company and haven’t said much publicly during this time, but I will now.”

“We announced changes to our leadership team and operations yesterday. Changes impacting people are always hard,” Agrawal explained.

Agrawal then noted, “And some have been asking why a ‘lame-duck’ CEO would make these changes if we’re getting acquired anyway.”

“The short answer is very simple: While I expect the deal to close, we need to be prepared for all scenarios and always do what’s right for Twitter. I’m accountable for leading and operating Twitter, and our job is to build a stronger Twitter every day,” Agrawal insisted.

Agrawal claimed, “No one at Twitter is working just to keep the lights on. We take pride in our work. Regardless of the company’s future ownership, we’re here improving Twitter as a product and business for customers, partners, shareholders, and all of you.”

“People have also asked: why manage costs now vs after close? Our industry is in a very challenging macro environment – right now. I won’t use the deal as an excuse to avoid making important decisions for the health of the company, nor will any leader at Twitter,” Agrawal stressed.

Agrawal continued, “So what can you expect from me going forward? I’m still focused on doing the job, and that includes making hard decisions as needed. I will continue to embrace the deep complexities of our service and our business. And you can expect more change for the better.”

Perhaps taking somewhat of a shot at Musk, who has been outspoken recently, Agrawal outlined, “I will also try to bring more transparency to the work that we do. You won’t see tweets from me on the ‘topic of the day’ or the loudest sound bite, but rather on the ongoing, continuous, and challenging work our teams are doing to improve the public conversation on Twitter.”

“Finally – so much gratitude for our whole Twitter team. They have stood strong and focused, sharp and agile. They’ve been doing the work, as they always have. Onward,” Agrawal concluded, almost.

In a final reply, Agrawal added, along with a link to a Twitter resource for investors, “Because I mentioned the deal in this thread, he’re the obligatory legalese for your reading pleasure.”

A lot has happened over the past several weeks. I’ve been focused on the company and haven't said much publicly during this time, but I will now.

— Parag Agrawal (@paraga) May 13, 2022