Linda Yaccarino said on Wednesday she would step down from her role as CEO of X in a surprise move, just months after billionare Elon Musk's social media platform was acquired by his AI startup, xAI. 

Her departure adds to the turbulence in Musk's sprawling business empire, including falling sales at his electric vehicle company, Tesla, and AI-related controversies. Musk is also embroiled in a war of words with his former ally, U.S. President Donald Trump.

Yaccarino announced that she was leaving in a post on X, stating that she was grateful to Musk "for entrusting me with the responsibility of protecting free speech, turning the company around, and transforming X into the Everything App."

In a reply to the CEO's post, Musk thanked Yaccarino for her contributions.

In her post, she did not give a specific reason for her decision to leave. Neither she nor representatives at X responded to requests for comment.

Grok chatbot under fire over antisemitic responses  

Her resignation comes just one day after Grok, X's AI chatbot developed by xAI, posted antisemitic content praising Adolf Hitler on the platform. On Tuesday, Grok suggested Hitler would be able to combat alleged "anti-white hatred," saying he would "spot the pattern and handle it decisively."

The posts were later deleted following backlash from the public and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

Some people on X noted Yaccarino's resignation came just a day after the chatbot's use of antisemitic language.

"Does this have anything to do with Grok's meltdown yesterday?" one user asked.

Yaccarino, previously chair of global advertising and partnerships at Comcast's NBCUniversal, may have left as "a result of a lack of fit between her approach and Elon Musk's style," said Gil Luria, analyst at D.A. Davidson.

"This may have come to a head when the embedded AI chat Grok started responding to AI posts in an increasingly offensive manner yesterday."

In March, Musk's AI startup xAI acquired the social media platform in a $33 billion all-stock deal.

Tesla also faces exec exodus

Tesla is also dealing with an exodus of top executives. Musk's confidant at Tesla, Omead Afshar, and North America HR director Jenna Ferrua left the company last month, sources told Reuters.

Tesla shares slipped about one per cent on news about Yaccarino's departure, but then clawed back some lost ground.

Yaccarino took the top job in 2023 to help Musk transform Twitter, as it was then known, after he bought it in a $44 billion deal.

The social media platform is dealing with a heavy debt load, and Yaccarino has often had to deal with controversies stirred up by Musk, including his endorsement of antisemitic conspiracy theories in late 2023.

The company later sued numerous advertisers and an advertising group, alleging they colluded to deny X ad dollars.

Under Yaccarino, X introduced a range of new features aimed at turning the social media site into the "everything app" that Musk desired, including partnering with Visa to offer direct payment solutions and launching a smart TV app.

The company was also exploring rolling out an X credit or debit card, the Financial Times reported last month.