The rivalry between two of the world’s most prominent tech figures, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk, is intensifying. Since the launch of Meta’s latest social media venture, Threads, many have observed Musk’s growing unease and animosity toward his counterpart Zuckerberg.
As the Twitter CEO, Musk has publicly accused Zuckerberg and his company of appropriating Twitter’s proprietary information to develop their new application.
The unveiling of Meta’s “Threads” took both Musk and the world by surprise, with the public learning of its availability on July 5th, 2023. Despite being a work in progress, Threads has quickly become the fastest-growing app in history, amassing over 100 million users within six days and capturing nearly a quarter of Twitter’s total monthly active user base.
One might expect tech entrepreneurs to celebrate Threads’ remarkable success and its potential to enhance users’ lives. However, the absence of camaraderie begs the question: why is Musk not amused by this development?
Like Zuckerberg, Musk is undeniably brilliant in his field. However, as is often the case with highly intelligent individuals, they abhor being outsmarted. This is precisely what Zuckerberg seems to have achieved, catching Musk off guard.
It’s plausible that Zuckerberg strategically utilized their impending conflict as a diversion to launch Threads. While Musk focused on physical training and preparing for their clash, Zuckerberg was making unprecedented strides. With the acquisition of Twitter in October 27, 2022, Musk assumed a domineering role, disregarding user feedback and welfare. Although Musk implemented various changes to Twitter, the tipping point was his authoritarian removal of verification badges from users and imposition of an $8 monthly fee.
This unilateral action left many Twitter users feeling alienated, providing Zuckerberg with an opportune moment to introduce Threads. While Threads may not yet match Twitter’s features, its rapid adoption and demand for additional features signal potential challenges for Twitter due to Musk’s overbearing behavior.
Adam Mosseri, Meta’s head of Instagram, acknowledged that Threads currently lacks many essential features but assured users of future improvements.
Musk and his legal team remain steadfast, threatening legal action against Meta. According to Musk, competition is permissible in business, but misappropriation of proprietary business tools is not.
The anticipated showdown between these tech titans, both in court and potentially in the public arena, suggests that the feud may escalate further. In summary, Elon Musk’s current predicament is seen by many as a consequence of his arrogance, and failure to address user concerns may exacerbate his challenges with Twitter.
