Andy Jassy will take over as new Amazon.com Inc. chief executive officer on July 5, outgoing CEO Jeff Bezos said during the annual shareholder meeting on Wednesday. July 5, 2021, is the 27th anniversary of the company’s incorporation and also the day after Independence Day in the U.S.
Jassy, currently head of the Amazon Web Services cloud computing division, was named the company’s next CEO in February. Bezos will become executive chairman and focus on new projects and initiatives.
According to Variety, about the July 5 date, Bezos said, “We chose that date because it’s sentimental for me: the day Amazon was incorporated in 1994, exactly 27 years ago.” Bezos reiterated his confidence in Jassy, telling shareholders that “He has the highest of high standards and I guarantee that Andy will never let the universe make us typical. He has the energy needed to keep alive in us what has made us special.”
About his new role, Bezos said that he is “very excited to move into the exec chair role where I will focus my energies and attention on new products and early initiatives.”
Also at the shareholders meeting, Bezos addressed Amazon’s blockbuster deal to buy MGM, saying that the thesis for the $8.45 billion acquisition “is really very simple: MGM has a vast, deep catalog of much-loved intellectual property. With the talented people at MGM and Amazon Studios, we can reimagine and develop that IP for the 21s century.”
