Jeff Bezos stepping down as Amazon CEO
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Amazon announced on Tuesday that founder Jeff Bezos will step down as CEO in the third quarter of this year and transition to executive chair of the company's board.
The big picture: Bezos will be replaced by Amazon Web Services chief Andy Jassy, who heads the booming cloud business division.
Why it matters, via Axios' Sara Fischer: Jassy's promotion shows how important Amazon's booming cloud business has become.
What he's saying: "Amazon is what it is because of invention. We do crazy things together and then make them normal," Bezos said in a statement. "If you do it right, a few years after a surprising invention, the new thing has become normal.
- "People yawn. That yawn is the greatest compliment an inventor can receive. ... Right now I see Amazon at its most inventive ever, making it an optimal time for this transition."
By the numbers: Amazon also announced net sales increasing to $125.6 billion in the fourth quarter, compared to $84.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2019, and net sales in 2020 increased to $386.1 billion compared to $280.5 billion in 2019.
Our thought bubble, via Axios' Felix Salmon: The role of executive chairman is designed to give the holder power without accountability. Don’t expect Bezos to step back from Amazon when it comes to anything strategically important.
Between the lines: Bezos has spent an increasing share of his time and money on non-Amazon pursuits in recent years, including philanthropy, his private space firm Blue Origin and the Washington Post, which he bought in 2013, Axios' Kyle Daly writes.
- In an email to employees, he said that as executive chair, he will "stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, The Washington Post, and my other passions."
Yes, but: Amazon is mired in regulatory battles around the world, with governments increasingly skeptical about its size and power, and a Democratic-controlled Congress is eager to act.
- Earlier Tuesday, Amazon was fined $62 million for allegedly stiffing delivery drivers.
