Meet the tech Twitterati

More and more technology CEOs are turning to Twitter. But who is worth following and who isn't?

With the social media trend forming a big chunk of most tech firms' strategies, it is perhaps no surprise that a number of their chief executives are putting their money where their mouths are and getting online themselves.

Some have gained incredible followings rivalling some of the world's biggest pop stars, while others are one-tweet wonders. So who should you follow like a sheep, and who should you drop like a hot brick?

Follow

Microsoft founder Bill Gates
Followers: 24,200,000 Tweets: 1,760

Gates is a Twitter heavyweight, and has almost as many followers as One Direction.

Although Microsoft-related tweets occasionally pop up in his Twitter feed, he usually posts about his philanthropic work through his charitable foundation. He follows just 168 people - mainly fellow business leaders, Microsoft staff and charities, but actors Leonardo di Caprio and Ben Affleck are also on his "following" list.

Dell founder Michael Dell
Followers: 962,000 Tweets: 2,786

Michael Dell is something of a prolific tweeter and the man himself has almost twice as many followers as Dell's primary corporate account.

He regularly tweets, mainly about his company, but is also known for some online love-ins with Salesforce boss Marc Benioff. Dell has more followers than Madonna, who has a mere 935,000.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella
Followers: 525,000 Tweets: 327

Microsoft boss Nadella has been a member of Twitter since the start of 2009, but after an initial surge of activity, the account went into hibernation. But on getting the Microsoft top job last year, the account has burst back into life again.

Microsoft and Windows 10 are among his favourite topics to tweet about, but charitable causes get a regular look-in too.

Although his account is popular, in terms of followers, he is still lagging behind X Factor contestants Jedward, who have almost 700,000.

Unfollow

HP CEO Meg Whitman
Followers: 235,000 Tweets: 799

HP's CEO Whitman has not tweeted since 2011. In fact, she's only posted two things on the site since becoming the boss of HP four years ago - one tweet to announce her arrival in the job, and the other to pay tribute to the late Steve Jobs. Since October 2011, she has remained silent online.

IBM CEO Ginni Rometty
Followers: 14,100 Tweets: 0

IBM's chief executive Ginni Rometty has managed to lure more than 14,000 followers despite having never tweeted. She has been a member of the site since December 2011, but seems to still be thinking up her inaugural post.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg
Followers: 72,100 Tweets: 5

The Facebook boss was a relatively early adopter of Twitter, having been a member since 2010. He's only tweeted five times though (we wonder why?) - three appear to be botched attempts at retweets, and another two - which are exactly the same - encourage Twitter users to "friend up" their friends on Facebook.

He follows just three accounts on Twitter, all related to Facebook. He may have thousands of followers on Twitter, but on his own site Facebook, he's followed by a staggering 34 million people.