There’s a new Twitter CEO, but Elon Musk isn’t naming her yet

Elon Musk said Thursday he has found a new chief executive for Twitter, but did not name the person, while the Wall Street Journal reported that Comcast NBCUniversal executive Linda Yaccarino was in talks for the job.

Musk said in a tweet: “Excited to announce that I have hired a new CEO for X/Twitter. He will start in ~6 weeks!”

He said he will move into the role of chief technology officer of the social media platform in the next few weeks.

Musk took over as CEO of Twitter when he completed his $44 billion purchase of the company in October, then said in December that he would step down as CEO if he found “someone stupid enough to take the job.” He said he would run Twitter’s software and server team.

The Wall Street Journal cited people familiar with the situation as saying Yaccarino was in talks for the top job.

Reuters reported after Musk’s tweet that Yaccarino could be his choice to lead Twitter, according to a Silicon Valley executive and former Hollywood executive who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Yaccarino, NBCUniversal’s top advertising sales executive, interviewed Musk at an advertising conference in Miami last month. Yaccarino did not return calls seeking comment.

When asked for comment, an NBCUniversal spokeswoman said, “Linda is rehearsing for Upfront,” referring to a presentation NBCUniversal will host for advertisers in New York on Monday.

Musk has yet to name a candidate

If Yaccarino is out, it will be a huge blow to the company. Comcast said last month that NBCUniversal CEO Jeff Shell left after admitting to an inappropriate relationship with a woman at the company, following a complaint that prompted an investigation.

Musk has yet to name a potential candidate for the top Twitter job. Speculation was rife Thursday among tech and media insiders and on Blind, an anonymous messaging app for tech workers.

Former Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer was suggested in a conversation between Twitter employees on Thursday, according to one staffer.

Former YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki and a top executive at Musk’s brain-chip startup Neuralink, Shivon Zilis, were also among the names discussed by Twitter employees in Blind, according to former employees who saw the comments.

Top female executives from Musk’s other companies, such as SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and Tesla Inc Chairman Robyn Denholm, may be named, according to Jason Benowitz, senior portfolio manager at CI Roosevelt.

‘It’s hard’

Musk, who has been criticized by investors in electric car company Tesla for being distracted by his attention to Twitter, said he will move to the role of executive chair, along with the role of Chief Technology Officer, overseeing products, software and sysop. .

The post about the new Twitter CEO came about 15 minutes before the close on Wall Street on Thursday, and Tesla shares closed two percent higher. Shares rose 1.6 percent in after-hours trade.

“The boat anchor called Twitter has been released from Musk’s ankle. Now he can return to spend more time creating value at Tesla,” said Craig Irwin, analyst at Roth MKM.

Musk has long said he wants to find a new leader for Twitter.

In a Twitter poll Musk started in December, 57.5 percent of users voted for him to step down as CEO of the social media platform.

The billionaire’s first two weeks as Twitter owner in October were marked by rapid changes. He quickly fired Twitter’s previous CEO, Parag Agrawal, and other senior leaders, and then laid off half its staff in November.

Musk, who has proclaimed “absolute free speech,” said he took over Twitter to prevent the platform from becoming an echo chamber for hate and division. He also said he would “defeat” spam bots on the platform, a key area of ​​the fight with the Twitter board behind him when he bought the company.

He said last month that Twitter was “about to break.”