Twitter to begin layoffs Friday, days after Elon Musk’s $44 billion takeover

Twitter will be laying off staff Friday, the social media giant said in an email obtained by NBC News.

In the email, sent Thursday evening, Twitter said it would be notifying staff by email starting Friday morning about their employment.

“We recognize that this will impact a number of individuals who have made valuable contributions to Twitter, but this action is unfortunately necessary to ensure the company’s success moving forward,” the email said.

The cuts come after numerous reports that Musk had planned to slash the company’s 7,500-person payroll after he finalized his $44 billion acquisition of Twitter late last week. He immediately dismissed CEO Parag Agrawal, as well as Twitter’s CFO and its head of trust policy upon taking over the company.

Worries about layoffs began to emerge in the days before the buyout transaction was complete, but Twitter’s general counsel urged employees not to dwell on rumors before Musk officially took ownership of the company.

Meanwhile, Musk has sought to reassure advertisers, saying in a post to Twitter that the platform would not become a “free-for-all hellscape.” Musk also told the European Union that he planned to comply with the region’s Digital Services Act, which levies penalties on companies if they do not control illegal content, Reuters reported Monday.

But Musk has also promised to loosen rules about what kind of speech is allowed on the platform, prompting concerns that the changes could drive users and advertisers away. General Motors announced it would temporarily suspend its advertising on the platform.

Musk has also said he plans to form a content-moderation council that would include “widely diverse viewpoints,” though no changes have been made so far.

Reports suggested that hate speech surged in the opening days of Musk’s ownership of the site. Musk himself posted a link to a baseless, anti-LGBTQ conspiracy theory on Sunday regarding the attack on Paul Pelosi, the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Musk later deleted the tweet.

That was among nearly two dozen tweets Musk posted to the site last weekend, though few offered additional clarity on what the site will look like under his leadership.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.