A senior engineer from Elon Musk’s AI company xAI has left the organisation.
Zeeshan Patel, who played a key role in building the video tool Grok Imagine, announced his exit this week. He shared the update on X.
Patel joined xAI in May 2025. He was the first hire for the company’s video generation team. His exit comes less than a year after joining the startup. xAI has not shared details about his departure.
xAI Grok Imagine: Building Grok Imagine Under Tight Deadlines
When Patel joined xAI, the goal was clear. The team had to build a video generation model very fast. The timeline was just three months.
Patel said the work environment was intense. Teams worked late nights. Deadlines were strict. Many meetings happened after midnight.
The effort led to the launch of Grok Imagine v0.9. It later became Grok Imagine 1.0.
Grok Imagine Key Features
- Creates short AI videos
- Video length: 6 to 15 seconds
- Includes synced audio
- Generates videos in under 20 seconds
- Runs on xAI’s Aurora model
- Works on X and the Grok app
xAI launched Grok Imagine publicly in August 2025. Today, the tool creates millions of videos every day.
Patel also said Elon Musk was closely involved. Musk joined review meetings. Some happened as early as 3 a.m.
Also read about: Elon Musk Warns Over Grok illegal content
Exit Raises Questions on Staff Retention
Patel did not explain why he left. He only said he has started a new journey.
His exit follows other senior departures from xAI. Earlier this month, engineer Sulaiman Ghori also left. In August 2025, co-founder Igor Babuschkin exited the company. CFO Mike Liberatore left after three months.
Reports suggest xAI has a high employee turnover rate. Some estimates put it near 50 percent. Elon Musk has denied concerns. He said the company is moving faster than any other AI firm.
Meanwhile, xAI faces strong competition. Rivals include OpenAI’s Sora and Google’s Veo. The company has spent billions but earns far less.
Despite leaving, Patel said he is proud of the work. He believes the team will continue to build exciting products.
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