Elon Musk is no longer sure if he can buy Twitter

But there is a plan B, as he said at a conference on Thursday. Also: French music streaming service Deezer wants to go public and Peloton “desperate action”.

Good Morning! While you slept, work continued elsewhere in the digital scene.

The top topics:

Tesla-Chef Elon Musk admitted Thursday at the TED2022 conference in Vancouver that he was “not sure” if he could actually buy Twitter. The comments came hours after a regulatory filing revealed he had offered to acquire the company for $54.20 per share, or about $43 billion.

Twitter confirmed receiving the offer. The board has yet to review the offer, which values ​​shares much lower than the $70 they hit last summer. However, Musk had insisted that the offer was his “best and last.” During the conference, TED’s Chris Anderson asked if there was a “plan B” in case Musk’s current offer was turned down. Musk replied, “There is one.” However, he declined to elaborate. Despite his vast wealth, many of Musk’s assets are illiquid, leading some analysts to wonder how he would provide the funds if his offer were accepted. [Mehr bei CNBC und Handelsblatt]

on Founder scene: Julian Teicke von Wefox or Valentin Stalf von N26 – both are among the founders who participated in the University of St. Gallen have studied. But what makes the business university so special and can you really learn how to start a business at the university? [Mehr bei Gründerszene+]

And here are the other headlines of the night:

Deezer is close to a deal to go public. The French music streaming service is set to merge with an acquisition company backed by the family behind French luxury group Kering SA. The Paris-based Spotify competitor has 16 million active users and is available in more than 180 countries, according to its website. Deezer offers listeners a catalog of more than 90 million songs as well as podcasts, audio books and radio channels. [Mehr bei Wall Street Journal]

The new PelotonCEO takes drastic step to spur revenue growth after demand for connected fitness bikes plummets. The aim is to lower the prices for the home exercise equipment while increasing the monthly subscription fees for North American customers. Sales growth had slowed dramatically after many returned to the gym. Peloton founder and CEO John Foley resigned back in February and was replaced by Barry McCarthy, a former Netflix and Spotify executive. Shortly before the current announcement, activist shareholder Blackwells Capital had again asked Peloton to consider a sale. [Mehr bei Techcrunch und The Information]

Google-Mutter Alphabet and several other large US companies are relocating their employees from Russia to the United Arab Emirates. The companies are trying to keep their employees safe while the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues. The UAE has become a popular spot for companies like Alphabet, JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs as the country is willing to issue visas to Russian citizens as long as they are not subject to sanctions. [Mehr bei Wall Street Journal]

Google plans to spend around $9.5 billion on US offices and data centers this year. In 2021, the US tech group had invested seven billion dollars in new branches and the expansion of existing facilities. According to Google, the investment will create at least 12,000 new full-time jobs in more than a dozen US states by the end of the year. Among the new offices is an office in Atlanta. In addition, the Group’s presence in New York and the campus in Boulder, Colorado are to be expanded. [Mehr bei Wall Street Journal]

Of the Bitcoin could hit $100,000 within a year, according to the CEO of crypto lending company Nexo. Antoni Trenchev also told US broadcaster CNBC that he has concerns about the digital currency’s near-term prospects should the Federal Reserve begin to wind down its monetary stimulus program. If Trenchev’s forecast is correct, it would mean that Bitcoin’s price should more than double this year. In January 2020, Trenchev predicted that the price of Bitcoin would surpass $50,000 by the end of the year. “Everyone laughed at me,” he said. While Trenchev’s prediction didn’t come true for 2020, the cryptocurrency finally hit the mark in February 2021. [Mehr bei CNBC]

Our reading tip on Gründerszene is a story about cardboard. The Founders Sebastian Gutmann and Frank Thomsen provide with their startup Manyfolds tailor-made packaging via app. They want to help the environment with this. [Mehr bei Gründerszene]

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Have a nice Friday and a good start into the Easter weekend!

Your Gründerszene editors