Verified Facebook pages of Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Tesla Inc removed on Friday, minutes after Musk promised on Twitter to take down the pages when users challenged.
“Delete SpaceX page on Facebook if you’re the man?” a user tweeted to Musk. His response read, “I didn’t realize there was one. Will do.”
Facebook pages of SpaceX and Tesla, that had millions of followers, are no longer visible.
Musk had started the exchange by replying to a tweet from WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton on the #deletefacebook tag.
The hashtag gained popularity after the world’s largest social network angered users by mishandling data, which ended up in the hands of Cambridge Analytica – a political consultancy that collaborated in U.S. President Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign.
“What’s Facebook?” Musk tweeted.
Many users also prompted Musk to delete the profiles of his firms on photo-sharing app Instagram, which was acquired by Facebook in 2012.
“Instagram’s probably ok … so long as it stays fairly independent,” Musk replied.
“I don’t use FB & never have, so don’t think I’m some kind of martyr or my companies are taking a huge blow. Also, we don’t advertise or pay for endorsements, so … don’t care.”
Musk has had run-ins with Facebook Inc founder Mark Zuckerberg before.
Last year, a war of words broke out between Musk and Zuckerberg about whether robots will become smart enough to eliminate their human creators.
When Zuckerberg was asked about Musk’s opinions on the dangers of robots, he chided “naysayers” whose “doomsday scenarios” were “irresponsible.”
In response, Musk had replied on Twitter that, “His understanding of the subject is limited.”
