@WarrenBuffett Joins Twitter—He's 'in the House'

CNBC

Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett has sent his first tweet on his brand-new account, @WarrenBuffett. It reads, "Warren is in the house."

Buffett sent the tweet during a live streaming video interview with Fortune to promote his editorial in the magazine on why he's "bullish" on women.

Host Pattie Sellers asked if he was ready to try Twitter. He replied, "Pretty daring, but I'll try," and then asked, "Does it bite?"

After sending the tweet, he asked, "Who says you can't teach an old dog a new trick."

Just minutes after the first tweet, Buffett's account had almost 10,000 followers and that number was growing rapidly.

Buffett is famously uninterested in modern technology, although he does use a computer to play online bridge with his friend Bill Gates and others.

Gates tweeted back, "Welcome to Twitter @WarrenBuffett. First ever Twitter bridge tourney starts now. I bid 3 Hearts." He included a link to a photo of the two playing a hand.

While people in Buffett's office use e-mail, he doesn't have a computer on his desk.

He has been using a cellphone for several years, but missed what could have been an important call during the Lehman Brothers collapse because he didn't know how to check his voice mail.

In his Fortune editorial, Buffett writes that one of the reasons he's so optimistic about America's future is that women are beginning to reach their full potential.

"Fellow males, get onboard. The closer that America comes to fully employing the talents of all its citizens, the greater its output of goods and services will be. We've seen what can be accomplished when we use 50% of our human capacity. If you visualize what 100% can do, you'll join me as an unbridled optimist about America's future."