Phil Spencer Leaves Microsoft After 38 Years: Asha Sharma Named New Xbox CEO
A massive leadership shakeup has occurred at Microsoft Gaming. Xbox icon Phil Spencer has announced his retirement, with Asha Sharma stepping in to take his place. Xbox President Sarah Bond is also among the executives departing the company.
Phil Spencer Retires from Microsoft
Having joined Microsoft as an intern in 1988, Phil Spencer is retiring after a 38-year career. Spencer shared this decision with CEO Satya Nadella last fall, allowing for a quietly planned transition process.
During his tenure, Spencer transformed Xbox from a mere console brand into a global platform encompassing PC, mobile, and cloud gaming. Massive acquisitions like Activision Blizzard, ZeniMax, and Minecraft took place under his watch, nearly tripling the business volume. However, his era also saw a decline in Xbox’s dominance strictly as a console brand, alongside the release of several critically panned titles. Phil Spencer will remain in an advisory role until the summer to support the transition.
The New CEO: Asha Sharma
Asha Sharma has officially stepped into her role as the new Executive Vice President and CEO of Microsoft Gaming, reporting directly to Satya Nadella. Prior to joining Microsoft, Sharma served as COO at Instacart and Vice President at Meta. She brings deep expertise in building and scaling consumer platforms that reach billions of users.
In her inaugural message to the staff, Sharma emphasized feeling both a profound sense of humility and urgency. Highlighting the rapid changes within the gaming industry, she outlined the roadmap for this new era based on three core commitments:
1. Great Games: Noting that unforgettable characters and stories beloved by players are the foundation of everything, Sharma stated they will empower studios, invest in iconic franchises, and back bold new ideas.
2. The Return of Xbox: A clear message was given regarding a renewed focus on Microsoft’s roots and console players. While expansions into PC, mobile, and cloud will continue, the goal is to make the Xbox ecosystem a seamless, instant, and barrier-free platform for developers.
3. The Future of Play: Addressing the rise of AI and new monetization models, Sharma offered a reassuring message to players: “We will not chase short-term efficiency or flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop. Games are and always will be art, crafted by humans.”
Expanded Role for Matt Booty
Matt Booty has been promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Content Officer, reporting directly to Sharma. Under Booty’s leadership, Microsoft Gaming has grown to encompass nearly 40 studios across Xbox, Bethesda, Activision Blizzard, and King. These studios are home to legendary franchises including Halo, The Elder Scrolls, Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Diablo, Candy Crush, and Fallout. No organizational changes are planned within the studio teams.
Sarah Bond Departs
Xbox President Sarah Bond has also left Microsoft during this transition. Bond played an instrumental role in shaping platform strategy, expanding Game Pass and cloud gaming, and managing critical hardware launches.
A Platform Reaching 500 Million Players
As of today, Microsoft Gaming reaches over 500 million monthly active users, standing as a top publisher across all major platforms. Satya Nadella described these figures and the opportunities ahead as “expansive,” reiterating that gaming remains at the center of Microsoft’s consumer strategy. How Microsoft Gaming will shape its “player and developer-centric” vision in this new era under Asha Sharma and Matt Booty will be closely watched by the tech and gaming world. While the initial statements sound promising, personal trust in Microsoft’s execution remains to be earned.