Musk aims to ease concerns in address to Twitter workers

In an unusual move for what’s been an unusual takeover bid by the world’s richest man for Twitter, Tesla CEO Elon Musk will address the social platform’s employees Thursday, even though his $44 billion offer has not yet been completed.

Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal announced an all-hands meeting to employees in an email on Monday, saying they’d be able to submit questions in advance, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The meeting is a “clear step in the right direction towards the chances of a deal happening and a smart strategic move as Twitter employees have been left in the dark over the past few months and have many questions during this volatile period of uncertainty,” said Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives.

Musk reached a deal to acquire Twitter in April, but he has clashed with the company repeatedly since then over the number of bots, or fake accounts, that exist on the social media platform. Musk said he was putting the deal on hold on May 13, although it seems unlikely that he can do that on his own. Musk said he needed more data from the company about those bot accounts, despite the fact hat Twitter has reported its bot estimates — and its admission that they may be too low — to investors for years.

Twitter employees could have other reasons to be nervous about Musk’s impending takeover. The irascible billionaire has levied a barrage of criticism at the company, from its moderation and safety policies, which he terms a threat to “free speech,” to its anonymous user accounts, which he would like to eliminate, to its ban of former President Donald Trump, which he has pledged to reverse.

Harry Kraemer, a former CEO Baxter International and professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, pointed out that the deal is “not a guarantee until it is...