(CelebrityAccess) — Tech giant Amazon announced that its founder and CEO Jeff Bezos plans to transition out of his role as CEO of the company by the 3rd quarter of 2021.
In his place, Andy Jassy, the company’s current CEO of Web Services, Amazon’s cloud services unit, will step up into the overall leadership role at the company. Following his exit as CEO, Bezos said he plans to become executive chairman of Amazon’s board.
“I’m excited to announce that this Q3 I’ll transition to Executive Chair of the Amazon Board and Andy Jassy will become CEO,” Bezos said in a letter to employees obtained by CNBC. “In the Exec Chair role, I intend to focus my energies and attention on new products and early initiatives. 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.”
Bezos launched Amazon as an online bookstore in 1994, as the internet was just getting off the ground and grew the company into an e-commerce powerhouse, servicing consumers with a wide range of consumer goods from groceries to tech.
Amazon has also developed digital content platforms, including video on demand and music streaming platforms.
During the last 19 years, Bezos also oversaw the growth of the company’s bottom line, from a money-losing venture in the company’s early days to a $1.6 trillion market cap today.
Jassy, a longtime Amazon vet as well, joined the company in 1997 and led Amazon’s Web Service cloud platforms since its inception. AWS is now a key driver for the company’s bottom line and generated $46.3 billion in net sales for Amazon in 2020, according to their most recent financial filing.
