Jeff Bezos to step down as Amazon chief executive

Jeff Bezos to step down as Amazon(ˈaməˌzän) chief executive(iɡˈzekyədiv)

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is to step down as chief executive of the e-commerce(ˈkämərs) giant(ˈjīənt) that he started in his garage(ɡəˈräZH) nearly 30 years ago.

He will become executive chairman, a move he said would give him “time and energy” to focus on his other ventures(ˈven(t)SHər).

Mr Bezos, who has a fortune(ˈfôrCHən) of almost $200bn, will be replaced by Andy Jassy(ˈyäsē), who currently(ˈkərəntlē) leads Amazon’s cloud computing business.

The change will take place in the second half of 2021, the company said.

“Being the CEO of Amazon is a deep responsibility, and it’s consuming. When you have a responsibility like that, it’s hard to put attention on anything else,” Mr Bezos said in a letter(ˈledər) to Amazon staff on Tuesday.

“As Exec(iɡˈzek) Chair I will stay engaged in important Amazon initiatives(iˈniSH(ē)ədiv) but also have the time and energy I need to focus on the Day 1 Fund, the Bezos Earth Fund, Blue Origin, The Washington Post, and my other passions.”

“I’ve never had more energy, and this isn’t about retiring. I’m super passionate(ˈpaSH(ə)nət) about the impact I think these organisations can have,” he added.

Mr Bezos, 57, has led Amazon since its start as an online bookshop in 1994. The firm now employs 1.3 million people globally and has its hand in everything from package delivery and streaming video to cloud services and advertising.

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https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55912878