Elon Musk has ended his 10-day Twitter silence to announce that he was in Italy and had met Pope Francis.
“Honored to meet @Pontifex yesterday,” Mr Musk tweeted early on Saturday, next to a photograph of him and four of his children with the Argentinian-born pontiff.
He also tweeted a picture from Venice that appeared to be of himself with a woman, both dressed in masquerade ball costumes. Mr Musk, who has more than 100 million followers on Twitter, usually tweets prolifically and his absence from the platform had been noted.
The Vatican did not announce the audience or provide any information about what was discussed.
Mr Musk is in the process of buying Twitter for $44 billion, but since making the deal in April he has questioned the number of spam accounts on the platform, and last week said the takeover remained held up by “very significant” questions about the number of fake users on the social network.
The richest man in the world added that there were also questions about Twitter's debt and whether shareholders will vote for the deal.
The price of Tesla stock has collapsed since April, costing Mr Musk tens of billions of dollars, with investors in the electric-car company concerned that he may be distracted by his new acquisition.
Pope Francis frequently meets high-profile figures in strictly private audiences that are held in a reception room of the Vatican hotel where he lives.
A common talking point he uses when meeting with corporate chief executives is to appeal for them to use their wealth and technology to help the poorest while caring for God’s creation.
On June 21, Twitter’s board recommended that shareholders approve Mr Musk’s proposed purchase, though shares of Twitter remain far below his offer price, suggesting considerable doubt that the sale will actually happen.
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Mr Musk unveils a new all-wheel-drive version of the Model S car in Hawthorne, California, in 2014. Reuters -
Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk. Getty Images -
Mr Musk with music producer Quincy Jones. AFP -
The wealthiest person in the world with a worth of $274.3 billion, Mr Musk was named 'Person of the Year' by 'Time' magazine in 2021. Getty Images -
Focus on Mr Musk's taxes grew last year as Tesla achieved a rarefied $1 trillion in market value. Reuters -
The billionaire has hit back, saying he does not draw a salary from either SpaceX or Tesla, and pays an effective tax rate of 53 per cent on stock options he exercises. AFP -
Then US president Barack Obama speaks to Mr Musk on a tour of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, in 2010. Reuters -
Mr Musk during a television interview after Tesla's initial public offering at the Nasdaq market in New York, in 2010. Reuters -
With former wife Talulah Riley at the 2011 Orange British Academy Film Awards in London. Getty Images -
With Japan's former prime minister Shinzo Abe after a test drive of the Tesla Model S P85D in Palo Alto, California, in 2015. Reuters -
Mr Musk during the 67th International Astronautics Congress in Guadalajara, Mexico, in 2016. EPA -
From left: SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk, Corning chief executive Wendell Weeks, then US president Donald Trump and Johnson & Johnson chief executive Alex Gorsky during a meeting at the White House. AFP -
Mr Musk and former wife Grimes at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, in 2018. AFP -
Mr Musk leaves a court in New York City, in 2019, after a hearing in a lawsuit brought against him by the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Getty Images -
A prototype of SpaceX's Starship spacecraft is seen before Mr Musk gives an update on the company's Mars rocket Starship in Boca Chica, Texas, in 2019. Reuters -
Mr Musk at the construction site of the Tesla Gigafactory in Gruenheide, near Berlin, Germany, last year. EPA -
Dancing onstage during a delivery event for Tesla's China-made Model 3 cars in Shanghai. Reuters -
Mikey Day as a lawyer, Cecily Strong as a judge, and host Elon Musk as Wario during the "Wario" sketch on NBC's 'Saturday Night Live', in May. Getty Images -
Mr Musk with Armin Laschet, CDU party federal chairman and prime minister of Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia, talk during a tour of the plant of the future foundry of the Tesla Gigafactory in Grünheide, near Berlin, Germany. Getty Images
