Zuckerberg Says “Our Mission Isn’t To Be A Public Company” In Pre-IPO Opening Remarks

Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg received a hoodie from the NASDAQ CEO and thanked his site’s users in opening remarks recorded before he rang the NASDAQ opening bell this morning.

In his short speech that just aired on Bloomberg TV Zuckerberg said, “I know this may seem like a big deal. But here’s the thing: our mission isn’t to be a public company. Our mission is to make the world more open and connected. All of you out there have built the largest community in the history of the world. You’ve done amazing things that we never would have dreamed of and I can’t wait to see what you’re going to be doing as we go forward. So on this special day, on behalf of everyone at Facebook, I just want to say to all the people out there who use our product, thank you.”

The statement about the mission of the company echoed Zuckerberg’s letter to investors that was included with the S-1. In the letter he said:

“Facebook was not originally created to be a company. It was built to accomplish a social mission — to make the world more open and connected. We think it’s important that everyone who invests in Facebook understands what this mission means to us.”