Elon Musk has struck a deal to buy Twitter for £34billion.
The transaction is expected to close this year, with the Tesla founder agreeing to pay £42.57 for every Twitter share.
It means the social media platform will become a private company, owned by the world's richest man.
Musk, who is worth an estimated £214billion, has promised that Twitter will continue to be a platform for free speech.
Earlier today, he tweeted: "I hope that even my worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech means."
In a statement, he added: "Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.
"I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans.
"Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it."
Bret Taylor, the chairman of Twitter, said: "The Twitter board conducted a thoughtful and comprehensive process to assess Elon's proposal with a deliberate focus on value, certainty, and financing.
"The proposed transaction will deliver a substantial cash premium, and we believe it is the best path forward for Twitter's stockholders."
The Twitter board of directors unanimously approved the takeover deal.
Parag Agrawal, Twitter's CEO, added: "Twitter has a purpose and relevance that impacts the entire world. Deeply proud of our teams and inspired by the work that has never been more important."
The company said: "The purchase price represents a 38 per cent premium to Twitter's closing stock price on April 1, 2022, which was the last trading day before Mr Musk disclosed his approximately nine per cent stake in Twitter."
Musk increased his offer last week, putting pressure on Twitter to more seriously consider his bid.
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He put together a revised financing package from the investment bank Morgan Stanley and a group of other lenders, which were offering £10.2 billion in debt financing, plus another £9.82 billion in loans against his stock in Tesla, the electric carmaker that he runs.
Musk's purchase of Twitter could have serious implications for the 2024 US election.
Ever since launching his hostile take over bid as a self-described "free speech absolutist" he has been spurred on by Trump's millions of supporters to reinstate to Twitter the former President who was banned over the deadly Capitol Riot last year.
