Exclusive: X CEO calls for ad industry reset

State of play: "We're continuing the lawsuit because in order for us to find out exactly what happened, there needs to be accountability for past actions," she said.

• "Once we find out everything that happened, why it happened, what influenced this activity, there needs to be ecosystem-wide reform and a complete reset for the entire industry."
• X, she added, "will absolutely lean in to lead and mobilize the industry," and "to take a new look about behaviors that are appropriate and transparent."

Catch up quick: X last week filed a federal antitrust lawsuit against the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) and its members — including CVS Health, Mars, Orsted and Unilever.

• The suit alleges the group abused its influence over marketers and ad agencies to discriminate unfairly against X, prompting an ad boycott.
• The lawsuit specifically called out the actions of GARM (Global Alliance for Responsible Media), a trade body X was part of.
• GARM shut down last week, telling members it couldn't afford to fight X owner Elon Musk in court.

Between the lines: Yaccarino said the complaint wasn't filed on a whim, but with evidence that was presented via a report by the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee last month during a hearing.

• She argued the antitrust suit is warranted because the evidence suggested "an illegal coordination of efforts" against X and other conservative media companies to not make independent advertising decisions.
• "We want companies to make these decisions independently," she said. "A small group of influential advertisers coming together to mobilize shouldn't be able to monopolize what gets monetized."

Reality check: A judge will decide whether X's case is strong enough, but Yaccarino believes that X's troubles selling ads have stemmed from a coordinated boycott effort rather than concerns advertisers may have with X's products or policies.

• "The consequential nature of this indispensable platform cannot be disputed, and we urge people to make decisions on business data and facts and not any type of bias whatsoever," she said.
• She pointed to Musk's audio interview with former President Donald Trump Monday as an example of how X is uniquely positioned to drive cultural conversation, calling it a "seminal" moment.

By the numbers: X's advertising business has taken a significant hit since Musk purchased it in 2022.

• The company is expecting to take in roughly $2 billion in advertising revenue this year, a source told Axios.
• That's down from the $4.5 billion in ad revenue that the company had in 2021, the last full year that X, formerly Twitter, was publicly traded.

Between the lines: Advertisers have a track record of both joining and abandoning boycotts based on what they see as best for their businesses.

• Pulling ads from X, ad agency executives have long argued, is often an efficiency issue. Big brands can get a greater return from spending on less controversial platforms.

The intrigue: Technical problems Monday evening delayed the start of Musk's Trump conversation for nearly 45 minutes.

• Yaccarino didn't fully address whether that glitch, which Musk blamed on a distributed denial of service (DDOS) attack, should alarm advertisers.
• She said marketers should lean into the popularity of the interview and embrace a new reality where consumers are more skeptical of mainstream outlets.
• She cited innovations in payments, video and AI as examples of ways the platform is evolving to drive new opportunities for marketers.

What to watch: Yaccarino said an invitation for Vice President Harris to participate in a Spaces interview conversation is "wide open."

• A source familiar with X's plans said the company would allow Harris to pick whomever she wants to conduct the interview.