Elon Musk and Bitcoin: A 1,000% Surge and Social Media Impact
Six years ago, a tweet from Tesla CEO Elon Musk started one of the influential events in the adoption of Bitcoin. On October 28, 2017, Musk casually asked his followers, “Want to buy some Bitcoin?” Today, Bitcoin’s value has reportedly surged by roughly 1,000% since that moment, U.today reported.
Musk’s Bitcoin Journey
When Musk tweeted about Bitcoin for the first time, his Twitter account was reportedly locked, and some speculated he may have been hacked. At the time, cryptocurrency was still an emerging topic, and Bitcoin was trading far below today’s values. The tweet marked the beginning of Musk’s now well-known involvement with Bitcoin, a relationship that has seen its highs and lows.
Interestingly, this tweet was Musk’s first notable interaction with the social media platform, which he would later purchase in 2022. This fact adds an additional layer of significance to the tweet. Not only did it influence cryptocurrency markets, but it also set Musk on a path to taking ownership of Twitter.
Wanna buy some Bitcoin? 😉😉 pic.twitter.com/9ZbBJ5fuVq
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 22, 2018
However, in May 2021, Tesla suspended Bitcoin payments, citing environmental concerns related to the cryptocurrency’s energy consumption. Musk continued engaging with Bitcoin advocates, sparking debates on Twitter about the future of the digital currency. He later distanced himself further, tweeting in 2021 that he was not Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious creator of Bitcoin.
Musk is one of the renowned individuals who have appeared to influence the crypto market over the years, including the popular meme token Dogecoin. Some of his social media posts about Dogecoinled to a rise in the price of the meme token. His influence has also extended into the NFT space.
Meanwhile, the latest HBO documentary recently claimed to have discovered the identity of Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto. However, the individual suspected to be the pseudonymous inventor of the top digital asset swiftly denied the claims.
The greatest mystery of the internet age unveiled.
Find out in #MoneyElectric: The Bitcoin Mystery, a new @HBO Original Documentary, premiering tonight at 9 pm ET on @StreamOnMax. pic.twitter.com/Tc24HY2tGD— HBO Documentaries (@HBODocs) October 8, 2024
The documentary, titled “Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery,” mentioned that Peter Todd was Satoshi Nakamoto, an allegation the Canadian crypto expert denied