Elon Musk’s X forced to reveal investors by US judge
A judge has ordered Elon Musk’s social network X, to unseal the list of shareholders involved with X Holdings Corp.
On Tuesday (Aug, 20) almost 100 entities were listed in the filing, all of which have a stake in X but some appear to represent different funds controlled by the same firm or person.
One of the more unexpected names listed is the hip-hop rapper Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs who sits amongst some of Silicon Valley’s most well-known capitalists and entrepreneurs.
Other investors include the Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal al Saud, Twitter founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey, and venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.
These investors helped Musk to purchase the social media platform for $44 billion in October of 2022.
BREAKING: The full list of investors in X Corp has been unsealed. See them for yourselves. Some investors Include ownership stakes from Saudi Arabia and a slew of VC funds. pic.twitter.com/HIhLYxqBIJ
— Alejandra Caraballo (@Esqueer_) August 22, 2024
Why Elon Musk had to share list of X investors
While the platform has been under the ownership of the world’s richest man since late 2022, Musk initially had a seal on the list of investors. It was then attorneys for the nonprofit Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press who filed a motion last month asking for the records to be unsealed.
On Tuesday the U.S. District Judge Susan Illston granted the motion brought on behalf of independent journalist Jacob Silverman. This forced Elon Musk to unseal the investors and file an unredacted copy on the docket.
On July 3, the technology journalist posted an article on his website titled ‘Who Owns X?’ followed by the headline ‘Here’s why I’m trying to intervene in a civil suit against Elon Musk’s X.’
It was in this post that he shared his motives behind requesting for the document to be public.
“X had previously filed the list under seal, the kind of legal action that is routine. So is my attempt to get it unsealed — journalists do this all the time, arguing that transparency is in the interests of the courts and the general public.
“I believe that people have a right to know who owns a company with such a prominent role in shaping public discourse, both in the United States and around the world. X’s self-proclaimed role as a guarantor of free speech means that we should know which outside entities — and which foreign governments — may be able to exert influence on the company.”
Featured Image: Via Ideogram
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