Linda Yaccarino steps down as chief executive of X

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Linda Yaccarino is stepping down as chief executive of X two years into a role where she attempted to claw back advertising dollars while dealing with the mercurial behaviour of the platform’s owner Elon Musk.

In a post on X announcing her decision, Yaccarino said that she had “decided to step down” but was grateful to the billionaire entrepreneur for “the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company”.

She added: “Now, the best is yet to come as X enters a new chapter.” Musk’s artificial intelligence start-up xAI acquired X for $45bn in March to combine the data, models, computing power and talent of the two companies.

Yaccarino’s resignation comes a day after Grok, xAI’s chatbot which is integrated into X, repeatedly praised Adolf Hitler and shared antisemitic rhetoric on the platform, causing public outrage.

Late on Tuesday, xAI removed some of the posts and announced that it was taking “action to ban hate speech before Grok posts on X”.

A Madison Avenue veteran who was formerly NBCUniversal’s head of advertising, Yaccarino was appointed to head up the platform in mid-2023.

She was tasked with bringing back advertisers who had pulled their spending over Musk’s decision to relax moderation on the platform as well as his own provocative and sometimes conspiracy-laced posts. 

As chief executive, she sought to improve X’s video features, boost relations with creators and sports leagues, and develop X Money, a digital wallet and peer-to-peer payment service that is set to be released later in the year.

In an interview with the Financial Times last month, Yaccarino said that 96 per cent of the company’s advertising clients from before its acquisition had returned to the platform. 

However, the advertising business has continued to face major challenges and tensions with marketers have repeatedly flared, with Musk publicly berating those who boycotted the platform.

Multiple advertisers and agency executives have told the FT they remain cautious about running ads on X, citing high levels of hate speech and toxic content, while some are only spending nominal amounts.

Advertiser spending on the platform was boosted by Musk’s initially close relationship to US President Donald Trump, though the pair have since had a dramatic falling out.

Last month, Yaccarino pushed back against allegations that the social media company recently threatened brands with lawsuits if they failed to buy advertising on X.

Speaking to the FT, she dismissed as “hearsay” a Wall Street Journal report that said half a dozen brands, including Verizon and Ralph Lauren, had struck deals to buy ads after receiving the threats.

“It’s unnamed sources, random third-party commenters,” Yaccarino said.

Yaccarino took over the role from Musk, who had bought the company for $44bn in October 2022. He had signalled his time as chief would be temporary after facing concerns from Tesla investors that he was not focused enough on the car company.

However, Musk has remained active in leading X’s decision-making and product development, a role that critics have argued reveals the limits of Yaccarino’s power.