Jeff Bezos Steps Down as Amazon CEO: 'Amazon Couldn't Be Better Positioned for the Future' Bezos' last day was July 5, a sentimental date as it marks the 27th anniversary of Amazon's official debut as a company.
By Emily Rella Edited by Jessica Thomas
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
It's the end of an era for Amazon (AMZN) founder and now-former CEO Jeff Bezos as the billionaire stepped down from his executive position at the company.
Bezos' last day was July 5, a sentimental date as it marks the 27th anniversary of Amazon's official debut as a company.
His predecessor will be Andy Jassy, who was formerly CEO of web services at Amazon; Bezos will transition to a new position as executive chair of the Amazon board.
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"Amazon couldn't be better positioned for the future. We are firing on all cylinders, just as the world needs us to. We have things in the pipeline that will continue to astonish," Bezos said in a company email in February when he first announced his plans for departure. "We serve individuals and enterprises, and we've pioneered two complete industries and a whole new class of devices. We are leaders in areas as varied as machine learning and logistics, and if an Amazonian's idea requires yet another new institutional skill, we're flexible enough and patient enough to learn it."
Upon his departure, Bezos' net worth is estimated to be a $204.8 billion, according to Forbes' real time billionaire tracker.
The billionaire said he has plans to "focus my energies and attention on new products and early initiatives," which presumably includes his space company Blue Origin and news giant the Washington Post, which Bezos purchased in 2013.
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Amazon is coming off of a strong Q1, earning $108.52 billion in revenue after a $104.47 billion estimation, with Q2 earnings expected to be reported some time this week.
In less than two weeks, on July 20, Bezos is set to fly into space on his New Shepard rocket ship. He'll be joined by his brother and an anonymous bidder who paid $28 million for the coveted spot.
Amazon was up 3.3% early Tuesday morning, with an estimated increase of 18.33% at the same time year over year.
"Being the CEO of Amazon is a deep responsibility, and it's consuming," Bezos has said of his position as CEO. "When you have a responsibility like that, it's hard to put attention on anything else."
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