Musk Testifies Twitter 'Lied' About Bot Accounts in Lawsuit

Former Twitter shareholders allege Musk sought to manipulate stock price before acquisition.

Published on Mar. 4, 2026

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Elon Musk testified in federal court in San Francisco on Wednesday, defending his 2022 statements preceding his purchase of Twitter, which former shareholders alleged were falsehoods aimed at driving down the company's price. Musk said Twitter leaders "literally lied" about the number of fake and bot accounts on the platform, which he claimed exceeded the less than 5% estimate in SEC filings.

Why it matters

This case highlights the ongoing legal battles between Musk and Twitter over the acquisition, with shareholders alleging Musk made false statements to manipulate the stock price. It also raises questions about Twitter's transparency around the prevalence of bots and fake accounts on its platform.

The details

Musk testified that in 2022 he claimed there were more fake users and bots than the less than 5% estimate that Twitter calculated in SEC filings. Musk said Twitter's former leaders "intentionally spread lies" about the bot numbers. Shareholders sued in 2022, alleging Musk sought to use false, disparaging statements to get out of the $54.20 per share deal to buy Twitter, which was completed in October 2022 despite the legal battles.

  • Musk testified in federal court in San Francisco on Wednesday, March 4, 2026.
  • Musk made claims about Twitter's bot numbers in May 2022, prior to the acquisition.
  • Shareholders sued in 2022, alleging Musk's statements were aimed at driving down Twitter's stock price.

The players

Elon Musk

The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX who acquired Twitter in a $44 billion deal in 2022.

Twitter

The social media platform, now called X, that Musk acquired in 2022.

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What they’re saying

“They said that there was less than 5% falsehood, spam accounts on Twitter. They literally lied. It's false.”

— Elon Musk (San Francisco Chronicle)

“My tweets have sometimes the opposite effect of what one would expect on stock prices. Sometimes they have the expected effect.”

— Elon Musk (San Francisco Chronicle)

What’s next

The judge in the case will decide on the merits of the shareholders' allegations against Musk and Twitter.

The takeaway

This case highlights the ongoing tensions between Musk and Twitter over the acquisition, with shareholders alleging Musk manipulated the stock price through false statements about bot accounts. It raises broader questions about social media platforms' transparency around fake and automated accounts.