Elon Musk sends Twitter employees his weirdest email so far

Not regular hardcore. Hardcore hardcore. "Extremely hardcore."
 By 
Stan Schroeder
 on 
Elon Musk
This will certainly boost morale. Credit: NurPhoto/GettyImages

It must be fun working for Elon Musk.

The self-proclaimed Chief Twit who recently fired roughly half of Twitter's workforce, now has demands for the people who are still working at Twitter.

In an email seen by The Washington Post, and first reported on by former Uber and Skype engineer Gergely Orosz, Musk essentially issued an ultimatum to Twitter employees, asking them to commit to an "extremely hardcore" new Twitter.

Recipients reportedly had to actually click a "yes" link in the email as a condition to remain employed at Twitter.

In the email, Musk said that this will mean "working long hours at high intensity," and that "only exceptional performance will constitute a passing grade."

The email, which was sent on Wednesday morning, comes shortly after another recent ultimatum by Musk, which required Twitter employees to go back to working from the office or resign.

Shortly after taking the reins at Twitter, Musk laid off about half of Twitter's 7,500 employees, as well as a reported 4,400 of the company's 5,500 contract employees. Some of those who were fired were people who dared criticize or correct Musk publicly. And the layoffs have been so messy that Twitter reportedly had to ask some of the people it fired to come back.

Meanwhile, Musk's strategy of rapidly introducing new features or removing old ones has backfired in a number of ways. Most importantly, Musk's decision to start charging for the blue checkmark – the one that used to prove someone's identity on the platform – caused a flurry of fake news and impersonations, prompting Twitter to retract the feature until Nov. 29.

Stan Schroeder
Stan Schroeder
Senior Editor

Stan is a Senior Editor at Mashable, where he has worked since 2007. He's got more battery-powered gadgets and band t-shirts than you. He writes about the next groundbreaking thing. Typically, this is a phone, a coin, or a car. His ultimate goal is to know something about everything.

Mashable Potato

Recommended For You
Former DOGE employees give an inside look at the Elon Musk-led agency
Elon Musk wearing a DOGE shirt

Elon Musk’s SpaceX acquires Elon Musk's xAI, including social media platform X
SpaceX, xAI, and Grok logos



Elon Musk found liable for defrauding Twitter investors
Elon Musk arrives at federal court on March 4, 2026 in San Francisco, California.

Trending on Mashable
NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for April 3, 2026
Connections game on a smartphone

Wordle today: Answer, hints for April 3, 2026
Wordle game on a smartphone


What's new to streaming this week? (April 3, 2026)
A composite of images from film and TV streaming this week.

NYT Strands hints, answers for April 3, 2026
A game being played on a smartphone.
The biggest stories of the day delivered to your inbox.
These newsletters may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. By clicking Subscribe, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Thanks for signing up. See you at your inbox!