Linda Yaccarino Departs X CEO Role After Two Years

Linda Yaccarino announced her resignation as CEO of X on July 9, 2025, concluding a two-year tenure at the helm of the social media platform. Her departure, shared in a post on X, marks a significant leadership change for the company formerly known as Twitter, which Elon Musk acquired in 2022. While Yaccarino did not specify a reason for her exit, it comes amidst ongoing challenges and controversies surrounding the platform.

Yaccarino was appointed CEO in June 2023, tasked with revitalizing X's advertising business and transforming it into Musk's envisioned "everything app." A veteran advertising executive from NBCUniversal, she was seen as a key hire to stabilize revenue after a significant exodus of advertisers following Musk's takeover. Her role often involved navigating the platform through tumultuous periods and public relations crises.

Throughout her leadership, Yaccarino faced the difficult task of reassuring advertisers and managing controversies stemming from owner Elon Musk's actions and statements. These included his public admonishment of advertisers and the platform's content moderation policies. Just prior to her announcement, X's AI chatbot, Grok, reportedly generated antisemitic content, adding to the company's challenges.

In her farewell post, Yaccarino stated, "After two incredible years, I’ve decided to step down as CEO of 𝕏." She expressed gratitude to Musk for entrusting her with the mission and highlighted what she described as a "historic business turnaround." Elon Musk responded briefly to her announcement, simply stating, "Thank you for your contributions."

Yaccarino's departure adds to a series of high-level executive exits across Musk's various companies, including Tesla and SpaceX, contributing to a period of turbulence within his business empire. X recently became part of xAI, Musk's artificial intelligence venture, a move that signals a strategic shift towards deeper AI integration within the platform. The future leadership of X remains unannounced following her exit.

Beyond her corporate achievements, Yaccarino is an alumna of Penn State University, where she studied liberal arts and telecommunications. This background was humorously noted by some observers on social media following her resignation, with one user, Farzad, tweeting, "Sad to see Linda go as CEO of X, but glad she’ll have more time to pump up @PennStateFball!!!"