Linda Yaccarino announced Wednesday that she is stepping down as CEO at X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter.
Yaccarino joined X in June 2023, shortly after billionaire Elon Musk bought the site for $44 billion. Her decision to step down came after “two incredible years” at the company, she said in a farewell note posted on 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,” Yaccarino wrote. “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.”
In her note, Yaccarino also talked about accomplishments made under her tenure at the company and nodded to the platforms future with xAI, Musk’s artificial intelligence company.
“Now, the best is yet to come as X enters a new chapter with @xai,” she wrote.
Musk responded to Yaccarino’s announcement on X writing, “Thank you for your contributions.”
Musk tapped Yaccarino to replace him as CEO of the company in May 2023. “Looking forward to working with Linda to transform this platform into X, the everything app,” he posted on X at the time.
After joining X in 2023, Yaccarino was immediately tasked with boosting ad revenue — not an easy feat after many big brands pulled back on spending following Musk’s October 2022 takeover of the platform. Apple, Coca-Cola and Disney all removed paid ads from X that year.
By January of 2024, the company’s market value had plunged over 70% compared to when Musk purchased the platform, according to one Wall Street estimate.
Yet X’s prospects appeared to be improving under Yaccarino’s leadership. Both Amazon and Apple announced they would rejoin the platform earlier this year.
Before taking the helm at X, Yaccarino spent over a decade at NBCUniversal, where she served as chair of global advertising. During her tenure at NBC, her team generated $100 billion in ad sales, while she also helped launch the company’s ad-supported streaming service, Peacock.
Prior to NBC, Yaccarino spent nearly two decades at global entertainment company Turner. In her farewell note posted on X, Yaccarino did not say if she was immediately taking another job. .
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