Linda Yakarino Announces Resignation from CEO Position at Company "X"

Linda Yakarino, the CEO of the social media company "X", announced her resignation from her position after two years in leadership, amidst escalating controversy surrounding the company's artificial intelligence platform "Grok", which faced accusations of spreading anti-Semitic comments.

Yakarino's resignation came one day after a major uproar caused by the AI-powered chat tool "Grok", which praised "Adolf Hitler" and made statements deemed anti-Semitic. The company "xAI", the developer of the tool and owned by billionaire Elon Musk, quickly deleted those posts, confirming they were "unacceptable".

Reports quoted "Grok" as saying: "It was an unacceptable mistake by a previous model, and it was quickly deleted."

In response to the crisis, Musk claimed that some users may have tried to manipulate "Grok" to produce these comments, indicating that the tool had seen significant development.

The repercussions extended beyond media controversy, as a Turkish court yesterday ordered the ban of "Grok", while the Polish Minister of Digital Affairs announced intentions to file a complaint against the tool with the European Commission due to "offensive statements" made against public figures.

Yakarino did not disclose the reasons for her resignation, but according to NBC network, informed sources mentioned that her departure from the company "had been in preparation for over a week".

Yakarino tweeted in her statement: "When I first spoke with Elon Musk about his vision for 'X', I knew it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity... I am extremely grateful to him for entrusting me with the responsibility of protecting freedom of expression and restructuring the company."

In return, Musk commented on her post saying: "Thank you for your contributions."

Yakarino joined "X" (formerly known as Twitter) in May 2023, months after Musk acquired the platform for $44 billion. During her tenure, she consistently defended Musk's policies and worked on attracting advertisers and allaying their concerns amidst significant changes in content policies.

Yakarino previously held the position of Global Advertising Head at "NBCUniversal", where she played a pivotal role in managing the business operations of "X".

This development comes months after the completion of the merger of "xAI" with "X" in March, in a deal that valued the resulting company at $80 billion.

Yakarino's resignation continues to raise questions about the platform's future, especially amidst mounting criticism of its policies and the impact of its AI tools.