United States: Mr. Elon Musk has announced the appointment of Ms. Linda Yaccarino as the new CEO of Twitter. The former head of advertising at NBCUniversal will take over the business operations of the social media platform, which has been struggling to generate profits. Mr. Musk had been under pressure to find someone to lead the company and focus on his other businesses, such as electric carmaker Tesla and rocket firm SpaceX.
“Looking forward to working with Ms. Linda to transform this platform into X, the everything app,” he wrote on Twitter, confirming the decision a day after he had stoked speculation by writing that he had found a new boss without revealing their identity.
As executive chairman and chief technology officer, Mr. Musk will continue to be involved in the company’s operations. The billionaire bought Twitter last year for $44 billion, and his takeover has been controversial due to his unorthodox management style and comments on the platform.
The new CEO’s appointment is a significant milestone in the tech industry, as fewer than 10 percent of Fortune 500 companies in the tech sector are led by women. Ms. Yaccarino has risen steadily through the ranks of some of America’s biggest media companies, including Turner Broadcasting System, NBCUniversal, and CBS.
Ms. Musk tweeted that Ms. Yaccarino would focus primarily on business operations while he would oversee product design and new technology. The billionaire had earlier asked his Twitter followers if he should step down as CEO, and 57.5 percent said yes. Mr. Musk indicated that he would only be in charge for a limited time to complete the organisational overhaul he thought the company needed to prosper.
Twitter’s new CEO faces significant challenges, including increasing the company’s revenue, improving user engagement, and addressing issues such as misinformation and hate speech on the platform.