Xbox boss Phil Spencer is retiring, and his replacement is an AI executive who joined Microsoft in 2024

Xbox boss Phil Spencer is retiring, and his replacement is an AI executive who joined Microsoft in 2024 | PC Gamer Skip to main content Open menu Close main menu PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES US Edition UK US Canada Australia Subscribe Sign in View Profile Sign out Search Search PC Gamer Games Hardware News Reviews Guides Video Forum More PC Gaming Show PC Gamer Clips Software Codes Coupons Movies & TV Magazine Newsletter Affiliate links Meet the team Community guidelines About PC Gamer PC Gamer Magazine SubscriptionWhy subscribe?Subscribe to the world’s #1 PC gaming magTry a single issue or save on a subscriptionIssues delivered straight to your door or device From$1Subscribe now Don’t miss these Gaming Industry Bluepoint Games, Sony’s famed remaster studio, is being closed as the fallout from PlayStation’s disastrous pivot to live service continues AI Unity boss who once called out the ‘idiocy’ of the metaverse now says his company’s new AI tech ‘will enable developers to prompt full casual games into existence with natural language only’ Gaming Industry Arc Raiders is such a huge hit, Nexon has put Embark Studios CEO Patrick Söderlund in charge of everything else too AI Microsoft AI CEO curiously omits ‘Microsoft AI CEO’ from list of white collar jobs that will be replaceable by AI in next 18 months Hardware Bloomberg claims ‘rampant AI demand for memory’ is forcing Sony to consider pushing back the launch of its next-gen PlayStation as far back as 2029 AI Anthropic AI’s safety lead quits with epic vaguepost claiming ‘the world is in peril’, and so he’s off to become ‘invisible’ and study poetry AI Microsoft CEO warns that we must ‘do something useful’ with AI or they’ll lose ‘social permission’ to burn electricity on it Gaming Industry Remedy’s new CEO is a former sports betting guy and EA executive who aims to ‘scale Remedy in a way that builds lasting value’ Hardware AMD CEO suggests next-gen Xbox will launch in 2027—the premium console’s chip is ‘progressing well’ Gaming Industry New Xbox boss promises no ‘soulless AI slop’ after moving over from Microsoft’s CoreAI products division The Elder Scrolls Bethesda’s former Elder Scrolls loremaster on why he left, Starfield’s ‘communication breakdowns’, and how he wanted The Elder Scrolls 6 ‘to be The Empire Strikes Back’ Windows Microsoft’s AI PC beginner’s guide demonstrates how convoluted its branding has become, but hey, at least ‘AI is not here to replace you’ Hardware ‘We had 16 megahertz CPUs, 640k of RAM, floppy disks’: John Carmack reflects on the hardware that made Wolfenstein 3D Gaming Industry 2 months after being acquired by private equity, Splash Damage is making major layoffs so it can ‘remain agile,’ even though it hasn’t released a game since 2020 Gaming Industry No layoffs at Xbox as a result of leadership shakeup, new chief content officer Matt Booty says: ‘My focus is on supporting the teams and leaders we have in place and creating the conditions for them to do their best work’ PopularNEW: PC Gamer Clips!Arc RaidersBest PC gearFalloutGame Quizzes Gaming Industry Xbox boss Phil Spencer is retiring, and his replacement is an AI executive who joined Microsoft in 2024 News By Andy Chalk published 20 February 2026 Sarah Bond, who was widely expected to take the reins one day, has instead resigned from the company. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Microsoft) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 16 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter PC Gamer Get the PC Gamer Newsletter Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Want to add more newsletters? Every Friday GamesRadar+ Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you’re going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them. Signup + Every Thursday GTA 6 O’clock Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O’clock experts. Signup + Every Friday Knowledge From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what’s on the horizon. Signup + Every Thursday The Setup Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more. Signup + Every Wednesday Switch 2 Spotlight Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo’s new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play. Signup + Every Saturday The Watchlist Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we’ve got you covered. Signup + Once a month SFX Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month! Signup + An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter We sometimes say “it’s the end of an era” to mark a notable occasion of one sort or another, and sometimes it’s warranted and sometimes, not so much. In this case, though, it really is the end of an era: After nearly 40 years at the company, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer is retiring.”When I walked through Microsoft’s doors as an intern in June of 1988, I could never have imagined the products I’d help build, the players and customers we’d serve, or the extraordinary teams I’d be lucky enough to join,” Spencer wrote in a memo sent to employees. “It’s been an epic ride and truly the privilege of a lifetime.””Last fall, I shared with [Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella] that I was thinking about stepping back and starting the next chapter of my life. From that moment, we aligned on approaching this transition with intention, ensuring stability, and strengthening the foundation we’ve built. Xbox has always been more than a business. It’s a vibrant community of players, creators, and teams who care deeply about what we build and how we build it. And it deserves a thoughtful, deliberate plan for the road ahead.” Related articles New Xbox boss promises no ‘soulless AI slop’ after moving over from Microsoft’s CoreAI products division If Xbox is ‘recommitting’ to its console, what does that mean for its recent ‘everything is an Xbox’ strategy? No layoffs at Xbox as a result of leadership sha