If you’re an X employee and want your stock options, you better be a good writer.
Elon Musk sent an email to X staff this week that says stock options will be granted “based on the anticipated impact of employees,” The Verge reports. Staff must submit a one-page write-up that details how they’ve contributed to the company.
The move is similar to what Musk did at Tesla before laying off 10% of its staff. There, he asked managers at the company to determine which employees were “crucial” to its success.
At X, the request for employee one-pagers comes after the company delayed its promotions process without explanation, The Verge says, which suggests layoffs could be on the horizon.
X hasn’t exactly been thriving under Musk’s ownership. In October 2023, the company was valued at $19 billion, about a year after Musk paid $44 billion for the platform.
User growth has also stalled. In July, the Financial Times reported that X only saw 1.6% daily active user growth in the previous year to 251 million daily active users. Rival Threads recently topped 200 million monthly active users; when it was at 175 million earlier in the summer, Sensor Tower estimated its daily active users at 38 million, Business Insider reports.
Plus, X has been sparring with advertisers. After Musk told them to “go fuck yourself” in late 2023, the company sued an advertising group earlier this month for encouraging members to avoid doing business with X.
