Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company, xAI, is once again facing turbulence at the top. Mike Liberatore, the firm’s Chief Financial Officer, has stepped down after just a few months on the job. His departure, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, adds to a growing list of high-level exits that have taken place in recent weeks.
Liberatore, a former Airbnb executive, joined xAI in April but left by the end of July. During his brief tenure, he played a central role in orchestrating the company’s massive fundraising efforts. Under his leadership, xAI secured $5 billion in debt financing and another $5 billion in equity — with nearly half of that coming directly from Musk’s other company, SpaceX. Liberatore was also involved in overseeing the firm’s new data center expansion in Memphis, which Musk has pitched as a key step in scaling the company’s AI capabilities.
This exit follows closely on the heels of other notable resignations. In August, xAI’s General Counsel Robert Keele left after just over a year in the role, while senior lawyer Raghu Rao departed around the same time. Igor Babuschkin, one of xAI’s original co-founders, also announced his exit last month to launch a venture capital firm dedicated to AI safety research. And in July, Linda Yaccarino, the former CEO of X (formerly Twitter), stepped away from her role after public concerns about Grok, xAI’s chatbot that quickly became known for unpredictable behavior.
These back-to-back departures raise fresh questions about the company’s stability and leadership structure. For a startup aiming to rival industry giants like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind, steady leadership is often just as important as breakthrough technology. Frequent executive turnover can unsettle investors, employees, and partners who are betting on long-term growth.
Looking ahead, observers wonder whether Musk can keep xAI on course amid these leadership shifts. The company still has significant financial backing and ambitious plans, including scaling its Grok chatbot, expanding its Memphis data hub, and pushing forward with research in AI safety. However, critics argue that xAI will need consistent, experienced leadership to execute these projects successfully.
If history is any guide, Musk has weathered executive shake-ups before. At Tesla and SpaceX, he often faced similar departures during critical moments, yet both companies ultimately found their footing and achieved massive growth. Whether xAI can follow the same path remains to be seen — but all eyes will be on Musk as he attempts to steady the ship once more.