Update, 10:53, 29/9, Laura Herijgers: Amazon confirms the hiring of Panos Panay. He will be responsible for leading the Devices & Services department.
Panos Panay will join Amazon at the end of October. The Amazon blog sharing the news further revealed that Dave Limp will guide during Panay’s first period at Amazon.
Dave Limp is the current SVP of Devices & Services at Amazon. However, he will say goodbye to the company later this year. He advances to the position of CEO of Blue Origin. Ties with Amazon are therefore not definitely cut off, as the space company is a part of the bigger Amazon brand. The move also brings him back to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. After stepping down as CEO of Amazon, Bezos has committed himself to the space company.
Original 10:24, 19/9/2023, Floris Hulshoff Pol: CPO Panos Panay is leaving Microsoft and possibly joining Amazon. Pavan Davuluri and Yusuf Mehdi will succeed the departed CPO.
Panos Panay worked at Microsoft for 20 years and was responsible for, among other things, introducing the Surface tablets and laptops. In his last period, he was responsible for Windows 11.
Also read: Windows 11 23H2 is on its way: what’s new?
Panay may be joining Amazon, according to Bloomberg. At this tech giant, he will be responsible for the Alexa voice-activated digital assistant and Echo smart speakers. Amazon has recently been expanding the application of this technology. In this scenario, Panay succeeds David Limp, who is retiring.
Getting employees from competitors
Panos Panay’s move is remarkable but not unusual. Two years ago, then-head of cloud operations at Amazon, Charlie Bell, switched to Microsoft. At the Redmond-based tech giant, he now heads the cybersecurity business.
Although Microsoft has a non-compete clause for its top management, it is often not enforced.
Succession secured
Microsoft immediately announced Panay’s successors. Pavan Davuluri will be in charge of operating systems, as well as devices and chips related to desktop clients, cloud and AI.
Yusuf Mehdi, currently head of consumer marketing, will be responsible for partnerships with computer manufacturers and retail organizations.
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