Jack Dorsey, a co-founder of Twitter, is stepping down as CEO.
Monday morning, Twitter announced that its Chief technology officer, Parag Agrawal, will succeed Dorsey.
Dorsey’s stint as CEO of both Twitter and Square has been widely criticized, prompting Elliott Management and billionaire investor Paul Singer to urge him to resign from one of those positions.
After the story surfaced on CNBC, Twitter’s stock jumped 11% before being temporarily suspended.
The company said Dorsey would step down immediately after Twitter’s stockholder meeting in 2022.
“I’ve decided to leave Twitter because I believe the company is ready to move on from its founders. My trust in Parag as Twitter’s CEO is deep. His work over the past 10 years has been transformational. I’m deeply grateful for his skill, heart and soul. It’s his time to lead,” said Dorsey.
Agrawal has served as Twitter’s CTO since 2017.
He said, “I want to thank the board for their confidence in my leadership and Jack for his continued mentorship, support, and partnership.”
On Sunday, Dorsey tweeted, “I Love Twitter.”
Early Monday morning Dorsey sent an email to staff, explaining that after 16 years with the company, it was time to leave.
“There’s a lot of talk about the importance of a company being ‘founder-led’. Ultimately I believe that’s severely limiting and a single point of failure,” he wrote. “I’ve worked hard to ensure this company can break away from its founding and founders.”
Dorsey said Agrawal was his preferred choice for CEO. “My trust in him as CEO is bone-deep,” he wrote. “I want you all to know this was my decision and I own it.”
In 2006, Dorsey, 45, posted the world’s first tweet: “Just setting up my twttr.”
