Igor Babuschkin, a co-founder of Elon Musk’s AI startup xAI, has announced he is leaving the company after playing a major role in its rise. Since helping launch xAI in 2023, Babuschkin has led engineering teams and been at the centre of building it into one of Silicon Valley’s leading AI model developers. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), he revealed that he will now focus on a new chapter in his career, which is launching his own venture capital firm, Babuschkin Ventures.
“Today was my last day at xAI, the company that I helped start with Elon Musk in 2023,” he wrote in a post on X. “I still remember the day I first met Elon, we talked for hours about AI and what the future might hold. We both felt that a new AI company with a different kind of mission was needed.”
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Babuschkin said his new firm will support AI safety research and fund startups in “AI and agentic systems” that aim to “advance humanity and unlock the mysteries of our universe.” He was inspired to take this step after a dinner with Max Tegmark, founder of the Future of Life Institute, where they discussed how AI could be developed safely to benefit future generations.
Reflecting on his time at the company, Babuschkin said he has “enormous love for the whole family at xAI,” describing the team as “the most dedicated people I’ve ever worked with.” He acknowledged that catching up to the AI frontier so quickly “hasn’t been easy,” crediting the achievement to the team’s “diehard grit and spirit.” He thanked every member for their contributions, time, and sacrifices.
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Looking back, Babuschkin compared himself to “a proud parent, driving away after sending their kid away to college.” He also said that he learned two “priceless lessons” from Elon Musk: “be fearless in rolling up your sleeves to personally dig into technical problems” and “have a maniacal sense of urgency.”