Should I step down as head of Twitter? Elon Musk launches fresh poll

The results of the poll would come tomorrow morning as Twitterati await in anticipation to see what will be Musk's next move.

New York, Dec 19: New Twitter chief Elon Musk has raised a poll asking Twitter users on whether he should step down as head of the social media site. The "Tesla" and "SpaceX" owner even said that he'd abide by the results so 'be careful'.

"Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll," Musk tweeted.

Musk's question came amidst several controversies rising on social media after he took over as the CEO of Twitter in October.

"As the saying goes, be careful what you wish, as you might get it," he added.

Since buying Twitter for USD 44 billion and taking over as the CEO in late October, the 51-year-old technology tycoon, who also runs Tesla and SpaceX, has journeyed from one controversy to the next.

Musk also announced on Twitter that major policy changes would be voted on moving forward. The poll comes as Twitter says it will shut down accounts solely designed to promote other social media platforms, the BBC reported.

The measure would also affect accounts that link off to or contain usernames from platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Mastodon, Truth Social, Tribel, Nostr and Post, the company said in a tweet.

Musk's announcement was the latest in a series of decisions by Twitter to generate blowback, after the suspension last week of more than half a dozen journalists who report on Musk.

Musk immediately fired several top executives, including its Indian-American CEO Parag Agrawal, and laid off about half of Twitter's staff after he took over as head of the social media platform in October. He then gave an ultimatum to the remaining staff that they need to do "extremely hardcore" work or leave, resulting in another thousand or so employees quitting the company.

Musk has started, stopped and restarted a revised verification system that costs USD 8 for a blue check mark. The billionaire's approach to content moderation has also been criticised, with some civil liberties groups accusing him of taking steps that will increase hate speech and misinformation.