Elon Musk says advertiser boycott at X could "kill the company"

Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X, said the decision by some major advertisers to distance themselves from the social media platform (formerly known as Twitter) could "kill the company."

"And the whole world will know that those advertisers killed the company," Musk said while appearing Wednesday at The New York Times' Dealbook Summit, where he was interviewed by Times reporter Andrew Ross Sorkin.

Musk also issued a defiant response to Disney CEO Bob Iger, who had appeared at the conference earlier in the day and spoke about his decision to halt advertising on X after Musk supported an antisemitic comment on the platform. Iger said that Disney "felt that the association was not necessarily a positive one for us."

Musk responded, "Go f--- yourself, is that clear? I hope it is. Hey Bob, if you're in the audience. That's how I feel. Don't advertise."

The advertising backlash occurred earlier this month after Musk tweeted that a post on X that claimed Jews fomented hatred against White people, echoing antisemitic stereotypes, was "the actual truth."

Disney, Apple, Coca Cola and other companies removed paid ads from the platform in the following days, which could deprive X of up to $75 million in revenue, according to a New York Times report. 

Still, Musk said Wednesday his support of the antisemitic post was "one of the most foolish" he'd ever posted on X. 

"I am quite sorry," he said, adding "I should in retrospect not have replied to that particular post."

In:
• Elon Musk
• Twitter

Aimee Picchi

Aimee Picchi is the associate managing editor for CBS MoneyWatch, where she covers business and personal finance. She previously worked at Bloomberg News and has written for national news outlets including USA Today and Consumer Reports.

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