Jack Dorsey the $11b net worth outgoing Twitter CEO definitely rings a bell to many people, especially those conversant with social media microblogging platform, Twitter.
Dorsey shocked the world yesterday, November 29, 2021 when he announced his resignation from the renowned social media platform, Twitter, a platform he co-founded with buddies Noah Glass, Biz Stone, and Evan Williams in March 2006.
But hey, let’s look at the profile of one of the most powerful tech-guy in the world.
Christened Jack Patrick Dorsey, the American billionaire, philanthropist and tech-preneur, a Catholic is of Irish, German and Italian descent. His father, Tim Dorsey worked as a developer for mass spectrometers for a company, while his mother Marcia Dorsey was a homemaker.
Dorsey in his teenage years had some stints as a fashion model but by age 14, he launched his foray into the tech world when he showed interest in dispatch routing, and created open source software that later got to be used by taxicab companies.
He attended Bishop DuBourg High School, actively showing interest in computers and communications then that he started programming while In High School. At age 19, Jack enrolled at the University of Missoouri but transferred to New York University two years later but did not finish his degree as he dropped out just a semester before graduating,
It was in New York University that the idea of Twitter was birthed but Jack had before then always loved programming, having being fascinated by the tech-possibility of coordinating taxis, delivery vans and other vehicle fleets.
After dropping out of the New York University, Jack moved to California and by the year 2000, he launched a company that offers his dispatch software through the Internet for use. It was not long after this that he conceived an idea of a site that would have the combination of dispatch software with instant messaging.
Jack Dorsey and Twitter
With interest in instant messaging and the inclination to know if software user status output could be shared among people, he approached Odeo, a directory and search destination website for RSS-syndicated audio and video that that time had interest in text messaging. He was famed to have come up with this question and idea: ‘What if you could share your status with all your friends really easily, so they know what you’re doing?’ It was there Jack Dorsey and Biz Stone, an Odeo executive and Odeo co-founder Evan Williams started the company ‘Obvious’ that later evolved to Twittr and then Twitter.
Jack Dorsey with his experienced knowledge of programming within 2 weeks, build a prototype of a site that allows users post short messages of not more than 140 characters or less, which will be later known as ‘Tweets’.
The quartet of Jack Dorsey, Biz Stone, Noah Glass, and Evan Williams founded Obvious Corporation metamorphosing into Twitter Inc, with Jack Dorsey unanimously chosen as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), with Dorsey posting the world’s first tweet in March 21 2006 with the caption: “just setting up my twttr.”. Jack Dorsey lost his position as CEO in 2008 after he was reported to have left work early to play yoga and fashion design games. Co-founder Evan Williams replaced Dorsey as Twitter’s CEO in October 2008, but Jack became the Chairman of the Twitter board.
Jack believes the improvement of uptime is more important than revenue making as he stated that Twitter was not designed to earn, while describing the commercial use of Twitter and its API as the two things that could transcend to paid features. His three guiding principles which in inculcated into the Twitter ideology are simplicity, constraint and craftsmanship.
By November 2013, with Twitter initial public offering gaining wide acceptance and with the starting share price of the company’s stock at $26 rising to $45 at its first day of trading, Jack Dorsey personal fortune grew so high that his 23.4 million shares in the company made him a billionaire.
With Twitter later becoming gradually accepted, it suffered constant service outages that threatened to kill the idea but it began to grow on the populace and became so powerful a tool that in the United Presidential polls of 2008, leading candidates Barack Obama and John McCain used the platform to update their teeming supporters while on the campaign trail.
Twitter launched into global prominence after the June 2009 keenly contested presidential elections in Iran. With the result of the polls seeing Incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared winner, opposition party supporters took to the streets to protest the declaration. The government suspecting an uprising blocked access to text messaging and foreign news coverage from satellite television, Iranians had no option than to make use of the available tool, Twitter to pass information. Users of the ‘bird app’ in Iran flooded the internet with live updates with various tweets.
It got so intense that a United States Department official had to send a email to Jack Dorsey to request a shift in Twitter scheduled maintenance to allow protesters continue tweeting. The State department spokesman had famously written to Twitter: ‘It appears Twitter is playing an important role at a crucial time in Iran. Could you keep it going?’ a request Jack Dorsey and Twitter obliged.
Jack Dorsey In Square Inc
Jack Dorsey now a millionaire, seeking to extend his legacy, having built twitter to have a staggering over 105 million users tweeting 55 million times a day, had his sights on other projects. He joined the crop of investors in social networking firm, Foursquare and from there launched his own company, ‘Square’, a platform that allows people receive credit card payments with the use of a tiny device plugged in to their mobile devices or PC.
Square Inc developed by Jack Dorsey was officially founded in May 2010, with the payment platform becoming the toast of millions of users globally. The process allows a small, square-shaped device to be attached to IPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and Android devices through the headphone jack, also coming as a mini card reader that let users swipe their debit card, then choose the amount to transfer to someone they want to send money to, while signing their name for confirmation. The Square app, available on iOS and Android OS also allows users send paperless receipts through text messages and email.
From just 10 employees at the testing stage in December 2009, Square grew to having over 100 employees by June 2011, and by September 2012, popular commerce tabloid; Business Insider magazine valued Square Inc at $3.2 billion.
With Jack Dorsey himself being the de-facto CEO of Square Inc, and having about 24.4 percent stake in the company, Square filed an IPO in October 2015 to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange, becoming a public traded company the following month, November 2015.
Square Inc, with the permission of The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in March 2020 was able to open a bank, while it announced its intention to launch Square Financial Services in 2021.
Dorsey’s Return As Twitter CEO
Jack Dorsey was reinstated as the Twitter interim CEO on June 1, 2015 after Dick Costolo replaced Evan William as CEO with the former later resigning from his position. Dorsey, who had earlier be appointed executive chairman March 28, 2011 became substantive CEO of Twitter October 5, 2015, just a day after the infamous new tweet algorithm that unsettled the ‘tweet space’. Shortly after re-emerging the substantive CEO of Twitter Inc, Jack Dorsey announced the downsizing of the workforce of the company by 8 percent. A move according to him was ‘part of an overall plan to organize around the company’s top product priorities and drive efficiencies throughout the company’.
Dorsey around May 2016, in an obvious attempt to entice users, having to compete with the likes of Facebook and social media giants announced that Twitter would not be counting photos and links in the 140-character limit it set up, a move premised for the purpose of allowing users free up more space for text.
He announced in March 2018 an improved twitter verification system to allow people verify more facts about themselves, an emphasis of proof of identity.
Jack Dorsey’s Personal Twitter Account Suspended
In what could be termed as one of the shocks of the decade, Dorsey on November 22, 2016 was briefly suspended from his own Twitter account, @jack sparking global curiosity. The account was later restored with Dorsey explaining via a tweet that the suspension was a result of an internal mistake. But some analysts believe otherwise as they suspected it’s as a result of a power play in the Twitter Inc board and the system engineers.
Philanthropy, Controversies And Political Influence
Philanthropy: Jack Dorsey is no stranger to philanthropy as he has on many occasions come forward to provide assistance for empathy cause.
He provided full funding to about 600 Missouri public school projects that were registered at DonorsChoose.
Dorsey and then Twitter chief executive, Omid Kordestani on February 2017 matched a $530,000 donation raised by twitter staffers to the American Civil Liberties Union, with their joint match bringing the total donation to $1.59 million.
Dorsey funded the planting of 150,000 trees in October 2019, contributing to the #TeamTrees Climate Change Initiative and in April 2020, announced the donation of $1 billion worth of equity in his Square Inc to support Coronavirus relief efforts globally.
He announced on April 7, 2020 the movement of around $1 billion of his equity share in Square, about one third of his total fortune to ‘Start Small LLC’ and also to COVID-19 relief programs.
He is famed to have donated over $24 million to more than 40 grantees for relief aids. He also donated $10 million to the Ibram X. Kendi-founded Center for Antiracist Research at the Boston University.
He was also reported to have donated $15 million to 29 Mayors who were piloting guaranteed basic income programs in the United States.
Jack Dorsey on May 2021, personally donated $15 million to help support COVID-19 relief efforts in India when the second wave of the virus struck the country.
Political Controversies
Dorsey showed his political affiliation probably when he financially contributed to the Presidential campaigns of 2020 Democratic presidential aspirants, Tulsi Gabbard and Andrew Yang.
Twitter shares fell six percent in September 2018 when Dorsey and Twitter were enmeshed in a political controversy alongside social media competitor, Facebook. Dorsey and Sheryl Sandberg, the COO of Facebook testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee after the two social media giants were accused of meddling in the U.S. 2016 presidential election. Dorsey also discussed twitter’s plan to counter fake accounts, while addressing accusations of political bias against Twitter.
He had written in his prepared testimony:
“We believe strongly in being impartial, and we strive to enforce our rules impartially. In fact, from a simple business perspective and to serve the public conversation, Twitter is incentivized to keep all voices on the platform.”
Not convinced with Dorsey’s denial of impartiality, then President Donald Trump summoned Dorsey to a private meeting at the White House, where Trump highlighted his concern of Twitter limiting and removing some of his Twitter followers, together with some of Republican Party members. After the meeting, Dorsey informed the public through a tweet that their discussion was centred on making Twitter more ‘healthier and civil’. Dorsey himself was subjected to criticism a week earlier for taking part in a TED talk that centred on Twitter’s spread of abuse and misinformation.
His personal account was compromised on August 30, 2019 by racist group, the ‘Chuckling Squad’, with his account breached for nearly an hour with the group using his personal account to post and retweet various racist tweets.
Dorsey not oblivious of the effect Twitter has on political polls, sought to dampen and reduce the effect by planning a ban on political ads on the Twitter platform, with Jack Dorsey announcing October 2019 that from November 22, 2019 a ban on all political advertising. This announcement negatively affected the fortunes of Twitter Inc as by October 23, 2019 the company’s stock price fell by nearly 24 percent, from $38.83 to $30.75.
Dorsey was among several tech company’s CEOs subpoenaed in October 2020 by the United States Senate Commerce Committee with the Roger Wicker led committee having to compel the CEOs of Twitter, Facebook and Google to testify before it to explain the legal immunity the trio enjoyed under the 1996 Communications Act (Section 230).
The tension between then President and Twitter led by Jack Dorsey got to a heated point in May 2020, when the platform added fact-checking links to two of Trump’s posts where the U.S President had claimed the mail-in voting has the tendency to lead to widespread fraud. Trump responded by threatening to ‘strongly regulate’ or shut down Twitter and other social media platforms.
Dorsey had until 2021 applied ‘world leader’ exceptions to allow Donald Trump post contents that should naturally be removed or the account sanctioned.
The feud between Twitter and Trump got a ‘spiral high’ when after series of Trump’s tweets receiving warning labels as at May 2020 before the polls and on the Presidential poll date, November 3, 2020, more of his tweets were flagged for misinformation. After losing the polls, Trump made several unproven allegations against the U.S electoral body, with Twitter flagging the tweets. Twitter applied a 12-hour timeout to Trump’s Twitter account on January 6, 2021 for violating the platform Civil Integrity policy after some of his tweets were said to have instigated riots at the U.S. Capitol. And by 8 days after the Capitol riot, Twitter permanently suspended President Trump Twitter account with Dorsey later releasing a statement justifying the ban, noting that Trump’s action ‘sets a precedent I feel is dangerous’.
Twitter In-House Feud And Bickering
Reports were rife in the media about a power tussle in the Twitter Inc and on February 29, 2020, the public was availed with reports that activist hedge fund Elliott Management led by billionaire Paul Singer was leading a coup to remove Dorsey as CEO and nominate four directors to Twitter’s board, an insinuation neither camps denied. An obviously humbled Dorsey was able to scale through the coup as he received solidarity and support from Tesla’s CEO, Elon Musk and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, and other prominent entrepreneurs. The impasse was resolved with Elliot Management and Dorsey reaching an agreement and compromise, Jack Dorsey thus kept his position as CEO.
But having to run both Twitter Inc and Square Inc concurrently, it was insinuated in some quarters that members of the Twitter board were not pleased with his positioning as the CEO of the two independent companies and was alleged to have been told to choose to remain CEO between Square and Twitter.
Ayoola Faseyi, an Abuja based Journalist with interest in Technology and Politics. He is a versatile writer with articles in many renowned News Journals.
He is the Co-Founder of media brand, The Vent Republic.
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