Elon Musk, the entrepreneur who gained control of Twitter in a $44 billion acquisition last fall, has again captured the public’s attention with his latest Twitter endeavor: replacing the classic bird logo with the Dogecoin “doge” on the website version of the platform.
The iconic bird symbol above the home button on Twitter’s website was unexpectedly replaced with the Shiba Inu “doge” emblem, representing the Dogecoin cryptocurrency and blockchain. Dogecoin was initially created in 2013 as a satirical jab at other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. Notably, the Twitter mobile apps did not undergo this change.
Musk, a self-proclaimed Doge meme enthusiast, has previously promoted Dogecoin on Twitter and during his appearance on “Saturday Night Live.” Following the alteration of the Twitter logo, Dogecoin’s price surged by over 30%.
This isn’t the first time Musk’s actions have impacted the cryptocurrency’s value. A few weeks prior, the price of Dogecoin skyrocketed when Musk posted a picture of the Shiba Inu, declaring it the new CEO of Twitter.
In a tweet, Musk shared a screenshot of a March 2022 conversation with a Twitter user @WSBChairman, discussing the Doge logo change. He captioned it, “As promised.”
Before purchasing the social media giant, Musk expressed concerns about Twitter’s impact on democracy, questioning what should be done. In response, @WSBChairman suggested he buy the platform and change the logo to the doge, to which Musk replied, “Haha, that would be sickkk.
However, not everything related to Musk and Dogecoin has been light-hearted. In June 2022, a lawsuit was filed against him in the Southern District of New York’s US District Court, accusing him of racketeering by promoting Dogecoin. On Friday, March 31, Musk’s legal team filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, which seeks an astounding $258 billion in damages.
The plaintiffs cited Musk’s “SNL” appearance, where he portrayed a fictional financial expert and referred to Dogecoin as a “hustle,” among other instances. Musk’s attorneys argued that the plaintiffs failed to show how his support for Dogecoin misled anyone or what risks he allegedly hid from investors.