xAI’s Legal Chief Resigns Following Turbulent Year

Robert Keele Steps Down as XAI’s Legal Head to Focus on Family

In a heartfelt announcement, Robert Keele has declared his resignation from xAI, where he held the position of head of legal for just over a year. His decision stems from a desire to dedicate more time to his children. Acknowledging a divergence in perspectives with CEO Elon Musk, Keele shared the news without any comment from Musk on his exit.

A Balancing Act: Family Over Career

“I love my two toddlers and I don’t get to see them enough,” Keele expressed in his posts on X and LinkedIn. Despite describing his tenure at the AI startup as “incredible” and calling his collaboration with Musk “the adventure of a lifetime,” he felt he could no longer juggle both family and work commitments.

Support from the Community

Keele’s announcement has sparked a wave of support on social media, resonating with both xAI colleagues and fellow parents. When he joined xAI in May 2024 as its inaugural legal chief, he had just launched a brief tenure with a fractional legal firm, noting, “Keele Law had a good run (~3 weeks!), but I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to run legal at xAI,” and described himself as “beyond stoked, and insanely lucky.”

Growth and Acquisitions at xAI

Keele joined xAI just ahead of a significant $6 billion Series B funding round back in May 2024, backed by prominent investors including Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia Capital, boosting the company’s valuation to $24 billion. Shortly after, xAI rapidly expanded, acquiring Musk’s social media platform X in March, which valued xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion, according to Musk’s comments at the time.

Background and Successor

Prior to his role at xAI, Keele served as head of legal at Elroy Air and as general counsel for Airbus’s Silicon Valley innovation center. Taking over his responsibilities is Lily Lim, who came to xAI after a rich career, including time at NASA as a rocket scientist focusing on spacecraft navigation for mapping Venus’s surface. She joined xAI in late 2024, specializing in privacy and intellectual property.

Trends in Executive Turnover under Musk

Keele’s departure aligns with a trend of executive turnover across Musk’s ventures. Following the recent exit of X CEO Linda Yaccarino, Tesla has seen several key executives leave, while Musk expects employees to commit intensely to their roles, sometimes requiring extreme measures like sleeping in the office.

The Shift in Corporate Culture

Meanwhile, some startups in the industry reflect a similar mindset by pushing for aggressive workforce reductions, as seen with AI coding company Cognition. Its CEO recently communicated to staff his disbelief in the concept of work-life balance.