Gary Zhou 
Elon Musk has reportedly provided Twitter’s employees with their first hard target. They must change Twitter Blue into a revamped subscription service, or they could leave the company.
Recent reports have indicated that Musk is initiating a number of changes on Twitter just days into his ownership of the social media company. These include a revamped homepage for logged-out users and discussions about using Starlink satellite internet to make Twitter more accessible to areas where it is currently difficult to access, among others.
Citing individuals familiar with the matter, The Verge noted in a report that Musk had given Twitter employees a directive to change Twitter Blue into a more expensive subscription system that also verifies users. This is quite different compared to Twitter Blue, which provides access to ad-free articles from some publishers and opens customization options for users.
With the revamped Twitter subscription model, verified users would reportedly be given 90 days to subscribe to the service or lose their blue checkmark. Twitter employees working on the changes were reportedly informed on Sunday that they would need to launch the feature on November 7. Otherwise, they would be terminated.
A Twitter spokesperson has not issued a statement about the matter as of writing.
With Musk as “Chief Twit” of Twitter, the Tesla CEO has reportedly tapped talents from across his companies, from Neuralink to The Boring Company to Tesla. Tesla engineers were reportedly brought in as advisors, which should help Musk initiate reported layoffs targeted at middle managers and engineers who have not recently contributed to the company’s code base.
The job cuts are reportedly to begin this week, with some Twitter managers reportedly creating lists of employees that would be released from the social media company. Twitter employees who are working on Musk’s tasks have reportedly worked late into the night and over the weekend as well.
