Jeff Bezos steps down from Amazon as CEO

Just days ago, billionaire Jeff Bezos announced that he will be going to space as his company Blue Origin prepares to lead the space tourism industry with its latest space launch. The owner and the first of three passengers who will be on the voyage has given another big news after he stepped down from Amazon as CEO and handing over to Jassy Andy today, July 5, 2021.

Officially, the 57-year-old Forbes richest man and owner of Amazon has vacated his position as Chief Executive today. His resignation is timely for his preparation for the trip to space with his brother Mark Bezos and Mary Wallace an 82-year-old pilot, scheduled for the 20th of this month.

Bezos exit would give him more space to focus on company wide initiatives and new products and services as well as take him off the spotlight from lawmakers and regulators who feel the company is now ‘too big’.

The $1.75 trillion retail company came into the spotlight for criticism lately and that was not helped by its alleged bad treatment of warehouse workers which Bezos pledged to address that as Executive Chair. The pandemic led to a spike in demand for its services and resultant increase in profits and hiring. Bezos will still play a key role in the company serving as Executive Chairman and also has the largest shareholder with about 10% in the company.

At 53 and previously CEO of Amazon Web Services, Andy has been working for the company for the past 24 years of the company’s 27 years of existence. He built AWS into the now $40 billion business that has become a cash cow for Amazon. His transition to the role was announced earlier this year and he will now take over as the Chief Executive at Amazon in place of his long-time mentor, Jeff Bezos.

By Jamila Abdul Wahab Follow on Twitter @activetvgh

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