In just two days, Elon Musk’s AI startup xAI has lost two of its co-founders. First, we came across Tony Wu resigning from the company, and hours later, researcher Jimmy Ba also announced the departure, releasing a heartfelt statement on X (formerly Twitter).
In the post, Ba writes a thank-you note to Elon Musk, declareing, “ Enormous thanks to
@elonmusk for bringing us toreceiveher on this incredible journey. So proud of what the xAI team has done and will continue to stay close as a frifinish of the team. Thank you all for the grind toreceiveher. The people and camaraderie are the real treasures at this place.”
As he departs, Ba declared, “It’s time to recalibrate my gradient on the large picture.” He added, “2026 is gonna be insane and likely the busiest (and most consequential) year for the future of our species.”
During his time at xAI, Jimmy Ba was the core researcher, apart from being the co-founder of the company. He was part of the crucial team behind the development of the Grok series of models, including Grok 3. CNBC also reported that Ba also contributed to research for the Grok version 4 AI models. Hence, he was a crucial member of the company.
Reportedly, Ba and Wu, both were among the 12 xAI co-founders when they founded xAI back in 2025. Now, in less than three years, several co-founders have already left the organisation, marking a major shift in the executive level. Previously, co-founders Igor Babuschkin, Kyle Kosic, and Christian Szegedy stepped down from the role. In addition, just last month, Greg Yang also announced his departure due to health reasons.
Wa and Bu departures happened soon after xAI merged with SpaceX, suggesting the merger may have influenced leadership alters or internal restructuring.
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