Elon Musk claimed to have found a new CEO for Twitter, or X Corp. as it is currently known, and numerous media outlets have identified her as Linda Yaccarino, a senior executive with strong ties to the advertising sector who works for NBCUniversal.
Musk did not specifically mention Yaccarino when he announced on Thursday, but NBCUniversal said on Friday that Yaccarino would be leaving the organization as chairwoman for global partnerships and advertising.
Yaccarino has been employed at NBCUniversal for close to 12 years, according to his LinkedIn profile. He has previously been president of cable entertainment and digital advertising sales and chair for advertising and client partnerships.
Before joining NBC, Yaccarino spent almost two decades working for Turner, a prominent worldwide entertainment firm.
Last month, Yaccarino spoke with Musk in front of a large advertising audience on a stage in Miami.
Musk and Twitter must entice advertisers after many left Twitter in the early months of his takeover, fearing damage to their brands in the ensuing commotion.
Musk said that advertising had returned in late April but gave no further information.
Although Yaccarino left NBCUniversal on Friday without giving a reason, her departure stoked rumors about her potential employment at Twitter.
Early on Friday, several media outlets reported that Musk was “in talks” to appoint Yaccarino as CEO. The Washington Post later received confirmation from sources that Musk had chosen Yaccarino to lead the social media company.
Musk has long maintained that he is not the company’s long-term CEO despite having purchased Twitter last fall and controlled it.
The Tesla billionaire said in a tweet on Thursday that he will now serve as executive chairman and chief technical officer of Twitter.
Just a few weeks after purchasing the social networking platform for $44 billion, in mid-November, he declared in front of a Delaware court that he did not want to lead any corporation.
After millions of Twitter users begged him to stand down in a poll the billionaire himself created and promised on Twitter, he made the promise. In December, he tweeted more than a month later: “I will resign as CEO as soon as I find someone foolish enough to take the job.”
Following Musk’s announcement on Thursday, Tesla stock increased by roughly 2%. The amount of time he spends on Twitter has alarmed the shareholders of the electric car company.
In November of last year, he was questioned in court about how he divides his time between Tesla and his other businesses, such as SpaceX and Twitter. Musk was called to the stand as a witness in the Delaware Court of Chancery trial concerning a shareholder’s objection to his alleged $55 billion salary package as CEO of the electric vehicle manufacturer.
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