"Let him prove to the public that Twitter has <5% fake or spam daily users!," Musk said in a tweet.

He also started a poll asking users whether less than 5% of Twitter daily users are fake/spam.

Twitter on Thursday dismissed a claim by Musk that he was hoodwinked into signing a $44 billion agreement to buy the company.

Musk filed a countersuit against Twitter on July 29, escalating his legal fight against the company over his bid to walk away from the purchase agreement.

(Reporting by Maria Ponnezhath in Bengaluru; Editing by Daniel Wallis)