Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, is clearing out memorabilia and office assets from the San Francisco headquarters of Twitter, following the platform’s rebranding last month. Over 500 items featuring the old Twitter logo will be auctioned off by Heritage Global Partners, including a giant sign with the iconic blue bird logo that used to adorn the side of the building. The auction will also include art, office furniture, musical instruments, fridges, lockers, beer dispensers, and two oil paintings of famous viral photos from Twitter.
One of the paintings is Ellen DeGeneres’s selfie from the 2014 Oscars, featuring Bradley Cooper, Meryl Streep, and Lupita Nyong’o. The other is the photo of Barack Obama hugging his wife Michelle after winning the US presidential election in 2012. Additionally, the auction will include miscellaneous items such as an indoor barn, hashtag-related art, a vinyl collection, and a dishwasher.
The starting offer for each lot is $25, and the auction will take place from September 12 to September 14, with bidding starting at 2pm GMT. This is the second fire sale at Twitter’s headquarters since Musk purchased the company. In January, he held an auction for over 600 office items, with notable sales including a Twitter bird statue that fetched $100,000 and a neon digital sign featuring the bird logo that sold for $40,000.
The previous auction was held during a period of financial troubles for Twitter, which was attributed to an exodus of advertisers following reforms introduced by Musk on the platform. However, the organizers of the auction denied any connection between the auction and Twitter’s financial status. Last month, Musk revealed that Twitter’s cash flow was still negative, with a 50% decline in ad revenue and growing debts.
The upcoming auction is seen as another move by Musk to reimagine Twitter. Since acquiring the platform last year, he has expressed his vision of turning it into an “everything” app, where users can communicate, shop, and practically live on the platform.
This auction provides an opportunity for fans and collectors to own a piece of Twitter’s history, while also symbolizing Musk’s commitment to transforming the platform. As he continues to shape Twitter’s future, it remains to be seen how his ambitious plans for the platform will unfold and whether they will ultimately ensure its success in the ever-evolving social media landscape.
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