It's the end of an era at Amazon. In line with the release of its quarterly earnings, the company on Tuesday announced that founder Jeff Bezos will step down as CEO and assume the role of executive chair in the third quarter of 2021.
Andy Jassy, currently the CEO of Amazon Web Services, which has helped drive profits for the global e-commerce giant in recent years, will take over the top spot.
"Amazon is what it is because of invention," said Bezos in the release. "We do crazy things together and then make them normal. We pioneered customer reviews, 1-Click, personalized recommendations, Prime's insanely-fast shipping, Just Walk Out shopping, the Climate Pledge, Kindle, Alexa, marketplace, infrastructure cloud computing, Career Choice, and much more."
The company also delivered its best quarter ever by revenue with $125.56 billion coming out of the holiday season, compared with $87.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2019.
In a letter to employees that was published on the company's blog, Bezos explained what he will focus on in his new role and commended his replacement.
"In the Exec Chair role, I intend to focus my energies and attention on new products and early initiatives," he wrote. "Andy is well known inside the company and has been at Amazon almost as long as I have. He will be an outstanding leader, and he has my full confidence."
Rebecca Walser, founder and CEO of Walser Wealth Management, discusses how geopolitical conditions, the bifurcated economy, and other volatility could weigh on markets.
The video announcement Friday came after weeks of speculation spread on social media about her whereabouts and health since she was hospitalized in January for unspecified abdominal surgery.
Chip Giller, co-founder, and Amy Seidenwurm, Chief of Programs and Strategy at Agog: The Immersive Media Institute, discuss how the organization uses the virtual world to make real change.
Luminary founder and CEO Cate Luzio shares some of the company’s latest Women’s History Month events and why there’s so much to celebrate about women in the workplace.
WSJ reporter Ray Smith breaks down why more companies are offering ‘dry’ promotions – a responsibility or title bump with no pay raise – and the pros and cons of accepting them.
Apple says a Justice Department antitrust lawsuit accusing it of engineering an illegal monopoly in smartphones in the U.S. is “wrong on the facts and the law.”
As Reddit shares begin trading at the NYSE, ‘Einstein of Wall Street’ Peter Tuchman breaks down the social platform’s debut and what it means for the overall IPO market in 2024.
