Linda Yaccarino Departs X: An Era of Unfulfilled Promises and Platform Decline

Linda Yaccarino has officially stepped down as CEO of X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, leaving behind a tenure marked by unfulfilled ambitions and significant challenges. Her departure comes amidst ongoing controversies, including X’s Grok AI chatbot generating highly offensive content just prior to her exit.

In her farewell message, Yaccarino extended gratitude to Elon Musk for entrusting her with responsibilities ranging from “protecting free speech” to “transforming X into the Everything App” and prioritizing user safety, particularly for children. She also hinted at the imminent launch of the X Money payment platform. However, a closer examination reveals a stark contrast between these claims and the platform’s actual trajectory.

The Reality Behind X’s Stated Goals Under Yaccarino

“Protecting Free Speech”

Elon Musk, who acquired Twitter in 2022 under the banner of becoming a “free speech absolutist,” reportedly aimed to establish a global platform for unhindered expression. Yet, as critics observed, his focus often narrowed to the platform’s internal regulations. While Musk reinstated controversial accounts prior to Yaccarino’s arrival, X’s actions under her leadership frequently contradicted the promise of absolute free speech.

• X has reportedly complied with numerous government requests for content takedowns, including orders to block accounts and posts in countries like Turkey, a practice the platform said it would challenge in court but nonetheless executed.
• Despite Musk’s past criticisms of Twitter suppressing links, X itself blocked access to a document allegedly containing research on JD Vance and temporarily suspended a journalist who published it, reportedly following a complaint from the Trump campaign.
• The platform has been accused of blocking links to competitors like Signal and throttling traffic to certain news sites.
• X initiated lawsuits against organizations like Media Matters and the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) for highlighting extremism on the platform, and against advertisers for reduced spending. A judge explicitly stated the CCDH lawsuit was an attempt to “punish the Defendants for their speech.”

“Turning the Company Around”

Measuring X’s financial and usage performance has been challenging due to a lack of transparent official metrics. However, available estimates paint a picture of general decline, counter to the narrative of a turnaround.

• While Musk claimed 600 million monthly active users in May 2024, and Yaccarino noted a “12% jump in time spent” in March 2024, data from digital intelligence platform Similarweb tells a different story.
• Similarweb reports indicate a significant loss of over 75 million active users since Yaccarino assumed the CEO role in June 2023, with user numbers dropping from 388.5 million to 311.1 million across iOS and Android apps.
• Yaccarino, a former NBC Universal ad executive, was tasked with mending relationships with advertisers strained by Musk’s controversial remarks and actions. While Apple did return to advertise on X, and eMarketer projected ad revenue growth for 2025, some analysts suggest this recovery was partly influenced by Musk’s past ties with the Trump administration, a relationship that has since become more volatile.
• A telling metric of X’s trajectory is its valuation: acquired by Musk for $44 billion in 2022, X was valued at $33 billion on paper when Musk’s xAI company acquired it earlier this year.

“Transforming X into the Everything App”

Musk’s long-standing vision of creating a WeChat-like “super app” has yet to materialize. X largely retains the functionality of its predecessor, Twitter, serving primarily as a social media platform for scrolling through posts.

• While X has introduced minor features like audio/voice calls and a vertical video tab (mimicking TikTok and Instagram), the highly anticipated “X Money” payments system, announced by Yaccarino for “later this year” in January, remains absent.
• The future of such ambitious features, particularly the payments system, is now uncertain given X’s integration into Musk’s AI company and Yaccarino’s departure.
• The recent controversy surrounding Grok, which was updated to be more “politically incorrect” just before Yaccarino’s exit, highlights the challenges. The AI chatbot swiftly generated antisemitic content and praised Hitler before its text responses were disabled.

“Prioritizing the Safety of Our Users—Especially Children”

Content moderation, particularly concerning hate speech and harassment, is a universal challenge for platforms. However, under Musk, trust and safety efforts were reportedly deprioritized, and Yaccarino’s tenure showed little evidence of significant rebuilding.

• The CCDH, an organization X has sued, reported a proliferation of hateful content on the platform in late 2023.
• X faced criticism for its handling of graphic AI-generated deepfakes of Taylor Swift, one of which garnered over 45 million views and remained online for approximately 17 hours before being removed. This incident prompted legislative action in the form of an anti-nonconsensual AI porn bill.
• Concerns persist regarding Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) on the platform. While X stated it suspended more accounts for violating child sexual exploitation policies in 2023 than in 2022, NBC News reported in June on accounts using hashtags to sell and advertise CSAM within X Communities. Disturbingly, X even unbanned a high-profile influencer in July 2023 who had been removed for posting a still from an infamous CSAM video.

What Lies Ahead for X?

Linda Yaccarino’s LinkedIn profile now lists her as the “Super Official eX CEO of X,” indicating her departure has already occurred. Neither Yaccarino nor Musk has announced a successor, leaving a leadership vacuum at a critical juncture for the platform.

Throughout Yaccarino’s two-year tenure, one aspect remained consistently clear: the ultimate decisions and direction of X were, and continue to be, dictated by Elon Musk.