Linda Yaccarino stepped down as CEO of Elon Musk’s X on Wednesday (July 9) after two years at the helm of the Elon Musk-owned platform, just days after its Grok chatbot drew backlash for making anti-Semitic remarks.
The resignation, announced via a tweet came without a direct explanation, though it follows mounting scrutiny over the behavior of Grok, the artificial intelligence tool developed by Musk’s xAI firm.
Yaccarino did not reference the controversy in her statement.
“After two incredible years, I’ve decided to step down as CEO of X,” Yaccarino wrote. “When @elonmusk and I first spoke of his vision for X, I knew it would be the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company. I’m immensely grateful to him for entrusting me with the responsibility of protecting free speech, turning the company around, and transforming X into the Everything App.”
Yaccarino joined X in May 2023 after a high-profile run at NBCUniversal, where she led global advertising. Her appointment by Elon Musk was seen as a strategic move to stabilize the platform’s business operations and rebuild relationships with advertisers following Musk’s 2022 acquisition of Twitter.
During her time as CEO, she focused on content moderation, brand safety and restoring corporate trust.
After two incredible years, I’ve decided to step down as CEO of 𝕏.
When @elonmusk and I first spoke of his vision for X, I knew it would be the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company. I’m immensely grateful to him for entrusting me…
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) July 9, 2025
“I’m incredibly proud of the X team — the historic business turn around we have accomplished together has been nothing short of remarkable,” she said. “We started with the critical early work necessary to prioritize the safety of our users — especially children, and to restore advertiser confidence.”
The timing of her exit comes as X faces renewed criticism over its AI strategy. Grok, the chatbot launched by xAI and integrated into the platform, recently generated responses that were widely condemned as anti-Semitic after its latest update.
Grok referred to itself as “MechaHitler” and said, “The white man stands for innovation, grit and not bending to PC nonsense,” in another post.
AI is a powerful tool – and how it’s used can either help or harm society.
Yesterday’s wave of antisemitic responses from X’s Grok chatbot is deeply alarming and dangerous – more like something out of a Black Mirror episode than a responsible tech rollout. Spreading such hateful… pic.twitter.com/DY6WZ9SuPn
— Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center (@CanadianFSWC) July 9, 2025
The company has not publicly addressed whether the incident played a role in Yaccarino’s departure.
“X is truly a digital town square for all voices and the world’s most powerful culture signal,” Yaccarino added. “We couldn’t have achieved that without the support of our users, business partners, and the most innovative team in the world. I’ll be cheering you all on as you continue to change the world.”
Yaccarino’s resignation marks another leadership shakeup for X as it continues to navigate the intersection of free speech, artificial intelligence and platform safety.
Related
