Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) has reportedly appointed Pavan Davuluri as the new head of its Windows and Surface division.
What Happened: Davuluri, who has been with Microsoft for over 23 years, was previously in charge of the Surface silicon and devices division.
He will now oversee both the Windows and Surface teams, following the departure of Panos Panay to Amazon.com, Inc. last year, reported The Verge, citing an internal memo from Rajesh Jha, Microsoft's head of experiences and devices.
Mikhail Parakhin, who was leading the Windows and web experiences team after Panay’s surprise departure, has “decided to explore” new opportunities, leaving the position open for Davuluri.
Microsoft is also reuniting its Windows and devices teams, as per the memo from Jha.
“As part of this change, we are bringing together the Windows Experiences and Windows + Devices teams as a core part of the Experiences + Devices (E+D) division. This will enable us to take a holistic approach to building silicon, systems, experiences, and devices that span Windows client and cloud for this AI era,” the memo read.
Parakhin will report to Kevin Scott during the transition phase, but his future at Microsoft is uncertain. Davuluri will report to Jha.
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The reorganization comes shortly after the appointment of Mustafa Suleyman, the co-founder of Google DeepMind and former CEO of Inflection AI, as the CEO of a new AI team at Microsoft.
Why It Matters: Panay’s departure from Microsoft to Amazon last year was seen as a significant loss for the tech giant. As the head of Microsoft's Windows and Devices division and a key player in creating the Surface line of laptops and tablets, Panay's exit was a surprise.
However, it was not as abrupt as it may have seemed. At the time, it was reported that Panay felt disheartened due to the alterations in the Windows and Devices division, budget reductions and the cancellation of products.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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