"No choice": X will close its iconic San Francisco office

Elon Musk pointed out that there was "no choice" but to move the headquarters of his social network X (formerly Twitter) out of San Francisco, California.

Musk's post was in response to a report from the New York Times that revealed a memo - sent via email - in which X CEO Linda Yaccarino tells staff that the office is closing, and employees would be moving to the platform's San Jose and Palo Alto headquarters.

The message comes a few weeks after Musk said he would move X and SpaceX (his rocket company) to Texas in response to a California law barring teachers from forcibly disclosing students' gender identity.

No choice. It's impossible to operate in San Francisco if you process payments (...) That's why Stripe, Block (CashApp) and others had to move.

The "right long-term" decision

"This is an important decision that affects many of you, but it is the right one for our company in the long term," Yaccarino wrote in the email.

X has been based in San Francisco since 2006 (when it was founded). Musk bought the company and renamed it (from Twitter to X) in 2022.

X's San Francisco building has gained headlines for its quirkiness. Last year, the company ran into problems with authorities for putting a big sign with "X" shaped lights on its roof after neighbors complained about it being too bright.