Tesla CEO Elon Musk was speaking at the Vancouver Convention Centre this morning after offering to buy social media giant Twitter for more than US$40 billion.
TED2022: A New Era, a five-day conference, has brought Musk, Bill Gates and Al Gore to Canada's West Coast.
Sources from Vancouver International Airport (YVR) told the Richmond News that their South Terminal (where private charters fly in and out) has been busy this week with Ted Talk participants.
Elon Musk's Jet, a Twitter account that uses a bot to track Musk in flight, posted earlier this week that his Gulfstream G650ER private jet (N628TS) flew from Austin to YVR on April 12.
It remains unsure whether the billionaire will be interested in visiting Richmond to try seafood or grab some Gelato after finishing the talk, but many Richmondites have posted on WeChat to share the news that Musk is in town, encouraging anyone who might see him in Richmond to snap a photo.
Musk offered to purchase Twitter outright, saying the platform "needs to be transformed" – Musk is a self-identified free speech absolutist.
Twitter Inc. said in a regulatory filing on Thursday that Musk, currently the company's biggest individual shareholder, has proposed buying the remaining shares of Twitter that he doesn't already own at $54.20 per share, an offer worth more than $43 billion.
Musk called that price his best and final offer, although he provided no details on financing. The offer is non-binding and subject to financing and other conditions.
Twitter shares rose to $47.83, up 4.3% but well below Musk's offer price, a sign that some investors doubt the deal will go through. The stock is still down from its 52-week high of about $73.
Twitter said it has received Musk's offer and will decide whether it is in the best interests of shareholders to accept or continue to operate as a publicly traded company.
-with files from Associated Press
