author: Adam Lukaszewski
Jeff Bezos Steps Down as Amazon Changes CEO
Jeff Bezos, one of the richest men in the world, is going to step down as CEO of Amazon. However, the changing does not mean that he will say goodbye to the company. We also know who will replace the company's founder.
- Jeff Bezos will step down as CEO of Amazon in the third quarter of 2021;
- However, the billionaire is not saying goodbye to the company completely and will continue to serve as its executive chairman;
- Jeff Bezos' successor at Amazon will be Andy Jassy, who is currently heading Amazon Web Services (AWS).
In an official statement to employees, Jeff Bezos announced that he will be stepping down as Amazon's CEO in the third quarter of 2021, and Andy Jassy, who is in charge of Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud services at the company, will take over his duties. Bezos resigns at a time of Amazon's great popularity, thanks to which he is today one of the richest people in the world with assets currently estimated at nearly $200 billion (according to Forbes and Bloomberg rankings). However, the billionaire will not completely part with the company - he will serve as chairman of Amazon's board of directors.
"Being the CEO of Amazon is a deep responsibility, and it’s consuming. When you have a responsibility like that, it’s hard to put attention on anything else. As Exec Chair I 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," reads Bezos' official announcement.
Amazon was founded in 1994 as an online bookstore and few expected the company to become an e-commerce giant in the future and a company whose market value is currently estimated at around $1.7 trillion. Jeff Bezos himself is optimistic about the future and believes that Amazon is prepared for new challenges:
"Amazon couldn’t be better positioned for the future. We are firing on all cylinders, just as the world needs us to. We have things in the pipeline that will continue to astonish. We serve individuals and enterprises, and we’ve pioneered two complete industries and a whole new class of devices. We are leaders in areas as varied as machine learning and logistics."