Phil Spencer Retires, Leaves Xbox Kids in AI Hands with No Help Button

KEY POINTS

•Phil Spencer retired after 38 years at Microsoft, including 12 leading the gaming division.
•Asha Sharma, previously COO at Instacart and Meta VP, became Microsoft Gaming's CEO in 2024.
•Sarah Bond left Xbox during the transition, while Matt Booty was promoted to Chief Content Officer.

Phil Spencer, Microsoft Gaming’s longtime boss and Xbox’s closest thing to a pied piper, retired after 38 years, including 12 leading the $69 billion gaming empire known for swallowing Activision Blizzard whole. Enter Asha Sharma, an AI bigwig who joined in 2024 from Instacart and Meta, probably thinking 'gaming' meant organizing your fridge or scrolling social media. Meanwhile, Xbox president Sarah Bond skips town, leaving Matt Booty — yes, that’s his real name — promoted to Chief Content guy, wrestling franchises like Halo, Call of Duty, Diablo, and Candy Crush. Satya Nadella vows this tag team will keep the Xbox ship from crashing into the streaming iceberg, spouting corporate poetry about 'generations of artists' and 'connecting people,' while Phil emails farewell from his final CEO dungeon with a nostalgic shoutout as 'XBL: P3.'