Elon Musk’s Twitter Fraud Deposition Was A Trainwreck (Footage)
April 16, 2026
AI Summary
5 min readElon Musk’s Twitter Fraud Deposition Was A Trainwreck (Footage)
In a deposition that has since become public, Elon Musk appears disheveled, tired, and repeatedly unable to recall key details about his own analysis of Twitter’s user base—details that formed the basis of his attempt to back out of the $44 billion acquisition. The footage comes from the recent trial in which a California jury found that Musk misled Twitter investors in the run-up to his purchase of the social media company, which he later renamed X. The jury awarded approximately $2.6 billion in damages, though Musk has said he will appeal. The deposition videos, now circulating on X itself, offer a rare unscripted look at how the world’s richest person answers questions under oath—and why the plaintiffs’ attorney, Joseph Cotchett, described the case as “a great example of what you cannot do to the average investors.”
Playing Dumb About Stock Prices
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What you'll learn
- 1 (00:00) **Case Background & Context** - Host recaps the jury verdict that Elon Musk misled Twitter investors before his $44B acquisition, setting up why the deposition footage matters
- 2 (02:40) **Playing Dumb on Stock Price Movements** - Musk feigns ignorance about Twitter's stock surging 27% in one day after his acquisition filing became public
- 3 (04:21) **The $200-300 Billion Promise to Morgan Stanley** - Musk is confronted with his own claim that Twitter could be worth hundreds of billions under his ownership, which he now downplays
- 4 (05:43) **Convenient Memory Loss on Critical Data** - Musk claims he can't recall whether his own legal team received key backup data on Twitter's sampling process just days before he killed the deal
- 5 (06:15) **Making Up Bot Analysis on the Fly** - Musk's entire case about Twitter overstating users was based on an internal analysis he can't remember who did or how, and never shared with relevant parties
- 6 (08:44) **No Communication Beyond Public Statements** - Musk admits he never directly informed advertisers, investors, or Twitter's public accountant about his claims of inflated fake account numbers
- 7 (09:56) **Forgetting His Own Accountant** - Musk stumbles when asked to name Twitter/X's public accounting firm, eventually guessing "Price Warehouse" (incorrectly)
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
John Johnston (JJ) reacts to some video clips from Elon Musk’s revealing deposition from the Twitter fraud case, in which Elon was found by a jury to have misled investors ahead of the $44 billion acquisition.
Related episodes:
Elon Musk’s $25B ‘Desperate’ Terafab, $2.6B Court Loss & FSD Crisis https://open.spotify.com/episode/78OQ3eeaWYqgpbNRqII50T
Elon Musk Moves For Twitter Fraud Mistrial Because He’s Too Hated https://open.spotify.com/episode/1CYU9vyPnqdJjl4ANDmwdu
Disclaimer: I am not a financial adviser and nothing in this content is financial advice. This content is for general education and entertainment purposes only. Do your own analysis and seek professional financial advice before making any investment decision.
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