Overview

• Recent reporting details an accelerating exodus of senior leaders across Tesla, xAI and X, with insiders blaming a high-pressure culture and abrupt pivots.
• At xAI, chief financial officer Mike Liberatore departed after 102 days and joined OpenAI, while general counsel Robert Keele left days apart after describing an exhausting workload.
• Tesla departures followed the April 2024 elimination of about 14,000 roles and the cancellation of a planned low-cost EV, with leaders such as Daniel Ho, Drew Baglino, Rebecca Tinucci and David Zhang exiting.
• X has lost key figures including CEO Linda Yaccarino in July, while public relations leaders Dave Heinzinger and John Stoll left after short tenures and xAI co‑founder Igor Babuschkin moved on to start an AI safety venture.
• Sources cite burnout, shifting focus toward AI and robotics, unease over Musk’s politics, and a new flashpoint with OpenAI after xAI alleged staff poaching and trade‑secret theft that OpenAI denied.