European Commissioner Thierry Breton, known for his crackdown on major tech companies and his public disputes with Elon Musk, has officially stepped down from his post. His resignation comes with accusations directed at European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, claiming she acted counter to his interests.
Breton had been the European Commissioner for the internal market since December 2019, a position that empowered him to oversee the functioning of Europe’s single market in both physical and digital realms. During his tenure, he played a critical role in the implementation of the Digital Services Act, introduced in 2022, which aimed to level the playing field against digital giants and tackle illegal content and misinformation spread online.
Von der Leyen recently began the process of appointing new members to the European Commission after her political faction, the European People’s Party, claimed the most seats in the European Parliament elections earlier this year. The French President, Emmanuel Macron, had renewed Breton’s representative status on the Commission, speculating that he was in line for a significant new role or even an executive vice presidency.
In his resignation letter shared on the platform X, Breton openly accused von der Leyen of politically maneuvering against him. He claimed she requested France to withdraw his name for “personal reasons” without ever discussing them with him, while offering an allegedly more influential position for France as a type of political compensation.
Tensions between Breton and von der Leyen heightened after Breton publicly expressed his discomfort with her re-election campaign, and continued as he urged Musk to ensure that his platform, X, complied with EU regulations ahead of a high-profile Trump interview. Musk’s response was notably dismissive, using a meme from the film Tropic Thunder to tell Breton to “back off.”
Although the European Commission maintained silence on Musk’s insult, a spokesperson remarked that Breton’s communication with Musk had not been pre-approved by von der Leyen or other commissioners, which was interpreted as a subtle reprimand.
In December, the Commission revealed it had initiated formal investigations into whether X breached the Digital Services Act, specifically in regard to risk management, content moderation, and data transparency. In its preliminary findings published in July, the investigation indicated that X’s blue checkmarks might have violated DSA regulations by misleading users about account credibility, with further aspects still under review.