Phil Spencer Retires From Microsoft After 38 Years
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- Phil Spencer is retiring from Microsoft after 38 years (joined as an intern in 1988), with CEO Satya Nadella announcing the change in a company-wide memo and Spencer staying on in an advisory role through the summer.
- Asha Sharma, currently president of CoreAI product, is taking over as CEO of Microsoft Gaming — her first gaming role after serving as VP of product and engineering at Meta and COO at Instacart, having rejoined Microsoft in 2024.
- Xbox president Sarah Bond is also leaving Microsoft to 'begin a new chapter,' per Spencer's memo, after she helped shape platform strategy, expand Game Pass and cloud gaming, and support Xbox Series X/S hardware launches.
- Matt Booty is being promoted to EVP and chief content officer, an expansion of his 2023 role as president of game content and studios.
- Spencer revealed he made the retirement decision in fall 2025 — months after Microsoft publicly said in July 2025 that he was 'not retiring anytime soon.'
- Sharma outlined three internal commitments: great games, 'the return of Xbox,' and the future of play, with an explicit 'renewed commitment to Xbox starting with console' that she said 'has shaped who we are.'
Why it matters: Microsoft Gaming's leadership shifts from a 38-year veteran (Spencer, 12 years leading Xbox) to Asha Sharma, CoreAI's product president with no gaming track record — and Nadella's July 2025 statement that Spencer was 'not retiring anytime soon' is directly contradicted by Spencer's own admission he decided to retire that fall. Sharma's explicit 'return of Xbox' and console recommitment signal awareness of fan anxiety about hardware direction.
