Jack Dorsey, CEO and co-founder of Twitter, stepped down on Monday as the company's board announced CTO Parag Agrawal had been appointed unanimously as the new chief executive.
"I've decided to leave Twitter because I believe the company is ready to move on from its founders," Dorsey said in a statement. "My trust in Parag as Twitter's CEO is deep. His work over the past 10 years has been transformational," he added of his successor. "I'm deeply grateful for his skill, heart, and soul. It's his time to lead."
not sure anyone has heard but,
— jack?? (@jack) November 29, 2021
I resigned from Twitter pic.twitter.com/G5tUkSSxkl
In an email to staff at Twitter, Dorsey explained that a company being "founder-led" is "severely limiting and a single point of failure" before listing three reasons for his departure: "Parag becoming our CEO," "Bret Taylor agreeing to become our board chair," and Twitter's staff that has "a lot of ambition and potential."
"I want you all to know that this was my decision and I own it," Dorsey wrote. "I'm really sad... yet really happy," he added before giving himself a large pat on the back in saying "there aren't many founders who choose their company over their own ego."
Twitter's board thanked Dorsey for "his visionary leadership and unrelenting dedication to Twitter since its founding" and overseeing progress that was "nothing short of incredible. Jack has given the world something invaluable and we will continue to carry it forward," the board added before saying it "has the utmost confidence in Parag."
Newly appointed CEO Agrawal thanked Twitter's board, saying "I look forward to building on everything we have accomplished under Jack's leadership and I am incredibly energized by the opportunities ahead." He promised to "deliver tremendous value for our customers and shareholders as we reshape the future of public conversation."
Following the initial reports of Dorsey's departure, Twitter's stock jumped before trading was halted pending the official announcement of the leadership transition.
Twitter shares surge 11% in pre-market trading after sources tell CNBC that @Jack Dorsey is expected to step down as CEO of the company https://t.co/Su2rksNXxj pic.twitter.com/vHwYAg2kdR
— CNBC Now (@CNBCnow) November 29, 2021
While Dorsey's departure from Twitter may be welcome news for conservatives who saw him as one face of big tech's censorship of disfavored voices — remember when no one could share The New York Post's bombshell about Hunter Biden's laptop? — there's little hope that the new CEO will be a champion for intellectual diversity or free expression.
Jack Dorsey is completely insane, but his successor will almost certainly be worse.
— Jerry Christmas ?????? (@JerryDunleavy) November 29, 2021
Not a Jack Dorsey fan, but this means censorship is about to get much worse at Twitter dot com https://t.co/0Yi8f1uq0p
— Daniel Bostic (@debostic) November 29, 2021
Agrawal previously headed up Twitter's BlueSky project, a part of which included addressing algorithms and "misinformation" on social media. The supposedly gallant campaign against misinformation is something that's been weaponized most frequently against conservatives in the name of preventing certain stories or narratives from gaining traction even if they turn out to be true, as was the case with the story about Hunter Biden's "laptop from hell."
And a resurfaced tweet of Agrwawal's from 2010 — an apparent quote lacking some much-needed context — suggests that people shouldn't "distinguish between white people and racists."
"If they are not gonna make a distinction between muslims and extremists, then why should I distinguish between white people and racists."
— Parag Agrawal (@paraga) October 26, 2010