Twitter's acquisition deal with Elon Musk may be more in danger of getting terminated than it previously was.
SpaceX and Tesla's CEO recently filed a new "termination letter" with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Aug. 29 in the hopes of canceling the acquisition deal he made with Twitter.
Musk's confidence in terminating the deal grew stronger following the revelations Twitter's former head of security, Peiter Zatko, made on Aug. 23, per The Verge.
Elon Musk 'Termination letter' Details
Musk's lawyer, Mike Ringler from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, has reportedly filed another termination letter to the SEC in regards to his acquisition deal with Twitter following Zatko's revelations.
According to the letter he filed on Aug. 29, Musk wants his deal with Twitter to be null and void in light of Zatko's revelation regarding the number of bots within Twitter's social media platform.
You may remember that Zatko mentioned that Twitter's leadership is aware that there are bots on its platform. However, they neither had the resources nor the proper motivation to fully understand the number of bots on the company's platform.
Zatko was previously Twitter's head of security. He joined the company in 2020, during Jack Dorsey's time in the company. However, he was allegedly fired in January because he refused to keep his silence about the company's vulnerabilities.
Musk previously threatened Twitter that he would not honor his end of the deal unless the company furnished him with the exact number of bots on the platform.
The letter also stated that the facts supporting the breaches were withheld from Musk but were known to Twitter during the time when the acquisition deal was made.
As such, Ringler argues that if Zatko's revelations are true, then Twitter has knowingly breached various sections of their agreement, allowing Musk to legally terminate it under its terms.
A CNBC report mentioned that Musk also said in the letter that the new termination notice was filed in case the original notice concerning bots, which was submitted in early July, was "determined to be invalid for any reason."
However, it isn't clear if the new termination letter strengthens his Musk's case against Twitter. Law professor Ann Lipton told The verge that Zatko's complaint against Twitter would be akin to a "wild card" for Musk, whose arguments did not appear to be very strong before Zatko's revelation.
Twitter's Response To The Letter
Twitter's legal team responded to Musk's termination letter that says that his case is "invalid and wrongful" under the acquisition's agreement.
According to Twitter's legal team, the agreement was based solely on statements made by a third party that is "riddled with inconsistencies and inaccuracies and lack important context."
Twitter has also mentioned that it intends to enforce the acquisition agreement and "close the transaction on the price and terms" it agreed on with Musk.
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