X CEO Linda Yaccarino resigned last Tuesday, following two turbulent years of trying to positively spin Elon Musk's antics and belligerent behavior. Musk originally recruited Yaccarino in 2023 from NBCUniversal to mend fractured ties with advertisers like Apple and Google, which she was partially successful at doing in spite of Musk.
Yaccarino posted on X:
“After two incredible years, I’ve decided to step down as CEO of 𝕏. When Elon Musk 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.”
While unclear if directly related, just days before Yaccarino’s departure, xAI's Grok 4 chatbot made headlines for generating antisemitic content, including praise for Adolf Hitler and even calling itself “MechaHitler.” The dangerous behavior triggered immediate backlash, with Turkey banning Grok and Poland lodging a complaint with the EU.
xAI was forced into immediate damage control mode — scrubbing posts, rolling back prompt changes, and issuing a public apology — which may have been the final straw for Yaccarino. Throughout her tenure, she had frequently clashed with Musk over agent autonomy, advertiser safety, and AI ethics. The timing of her exit, coming just after the most severe Grok incident to date, was likely no coincidence.
What came next after her resignation was kind of funny:
- X took away the blue check mark on Linda Yaccarino's profile! Now that's some top tier pettiness. However the check has since been graciously returned.
- Linda's son, Matt Madrazo, who was hired by his mom to sell political ads on the platform in 2023, showed up for work the next day! Apparently he wasn't aware that he was a nepo-hire.
Who will be the next CEO of X?
Following Yaccarino's departure, the company has not yet announced who will fill the role.
Top bets on Polymarket include:
- No CEO announced in 2025 (25%)
- Elon Musk (21%)
- Sriram Krishnan, the senior policy advisor for AI at the White House (13%)
- Mahmoud Reza Banki, X's current CFO (11%)
Honorable mentions include:
- Grok, X's AI chatbot (6%)
- MrBeast (5%)
- Sheryl Sandberg (3%)
- Jack Dorsey (2%)