Musk’s “free speech” plan is seen by advertisers as a bit of a worry. “Free speech” is a term highjacked by right wing nut jobs who use it as justification for spilling buckets of hate on anyone who is not a white middle-aged man. Advertisers who have made a good living selling products to people who are not white, right-wing, middle-aged men want to give Twitter a wide berth.

Staff likewise are not that keen to be associated with a company that, in theory, might give these people a place to peddle their hate.

Musk has not helped by even attempting to offer assurances to Twitter's advertiser base that Twitter will remain "brand safe," post-acquisition.

Musk has said only that he believes any speech not deemed illegal by a government will soon be permitted on Twitter. Twitter today already moderates a wide range of prohibited types of content beyond what's considered illegal.

Twitter said that there was a more immediate threat of employee departures and an inability to effectively recruit as other potential ramifications of the merge, and noted that "current employees could be distracted, and their productivity decline as a result, due to uncertainty regarding the merger."

Musk has downplayed any worries over employee departures when speaking to reporters on the red carpet at the annual Met Gala in New York, saying that "it's a free country," and that: "Certainly if anyone doesn't feel comfortable with that, they will on their own accord go somewhere else. That's fine."

He may not think that when he arrives at his $40 billion company to find no one working there and no advertisers willing to trust it.