Elon Musk calls LinkedIn ‘Cringe’—Announces Competitor

Shelley Cooke.
August 30, 2023

Elon Musk recently announced his intentions to create a direct competitor to LinkedIn. Musk’s grand plan is to make his version more trendy and ‘less cringe’, thereby attracting users who find LinkedIn totally uncool—or something like that.


Elon Musk calls LinkedIn ‘Cringe’—Announces Competitor.

It seems we can’t go for one week without talking about Elon Musk, but the news simply writes itself. In a recent post, The Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI owner announced his intentions to compete with LinkedIn by incorporating job listings into X (formerly Twitter).

In trademark Musk fashion, the Twitter boss told his followers he couldn’t use LinkedIn because its ‘cringe level is so high’. Presumably, this reveals that Musk believes his own ‘cringe levels’ to be remarkably low in comparison. Whatever you say, Elon.

In the tweet, Musk also announced that he would make the X competitor to LinkedIn ‘cool’. It’s impossible to predict what this entails.

Perhaps Musk’s idea of cool is making his job site look dark, edgy, and brooding, much like the recent white stains he incorporated into the X logo. Maybe he’s going to encourage users to apply for jobs with reaction GIFs or memes. Either way, we’re sure LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky is quaking in his boots right about now.

If you’re under the impression this may be another of Musk’s big ideas that won’t come to fruition, think again. X is already collecting biometric information about each user’s job and education history.

Of course, this feature also serves to display relevant advertising to users, but we’re sure Musk has other plans for how the data will be utilized.

Why a job site needs to be cool is beyond interpretation. Perhaps Musk is trying to capture a younger audience that believes LinkedIn is ‘so last year’. Even then, it’s tricky to predict that Musk’s new venture will do anything to dethrone LinkedIn as we move into the latter stages of 2023.


Shelley Cooke

Shelley Cooke is a blogger and podcaster from Asheville, North Carolina (Go Oilers!). She’s passionate about technology and the role it plays in building communities.

Read Next

3 Essential Design Trends, December 2023

While we love the holidays, too much of a seasonal theme can get overwhelming. Thankfully, these design trends strike a…

10 Easy Ways to Make Money as a Web Designer

When you’re a web designer, the logical way to make money is designing websites; you can apply for a job at an agency,…

The 10 Most Hated Fonts of All Time

Remember when Comic Sans wasn’t the butt of the jokes? Long for the days when we actually enjoyed using the Impact…

15 Best New Fonts, November 2023

2023 is almost over, and the new fonts are still coming thick and fast. This month, we’ve found some awesome variable…

Old School Web Techniques Best Forgotten

When the web first entered the public consciousness back in the 90s, it was primarily text-based with minimal design…

20 Best New Websites, November 2023

As the nights draw in for the Northern hemisphere, what better way to brighten your day than by soaking up some design…

30 Amazing Chrome Extensions for Designers and Developers

Searching for a tool to make cross-platform design a breeze? Desperate for an extension that helps you figure out the…

Exciting New Tools for Designers, November 2023

We’ve got a mix of handy image helpers, useful design assets, and clever productivity tools, amongst other treats. Some…

The Dangers of Doomscrolling for Designers and How to Break Free

As a creative professional, navigating the digital realm is second nature to you. It’s normal to follow an endless…

From Image Adjustments to AI: Photoshop Through the Years

Remember when Merriam-Webster added Photoshop to the dictionary back in 2008? Want to learn how AI is changing design…

3 Essential Design Trends, November 2023

In the season of giving thanks, we often think of comfort and tradition. These are common themes with each of our three…

30 Obsolete Technologies that will Perplex Post-2000s Kids

Remember the screech of dial-up internet? Hold fond memories of arcade machines? In this list, we’re condensing down 30…