(Reuters) – Amazon.com’s devices chief David Limp would retire in the coming months, in a high-level departure from a division that has struggled to bring revenue and been a target of the e-commerce giant’s mass layoffs.
The retirement of Limp, a more than 13-year veteran of Amazon, also marks another major exit at the company since Andy Jassy took over as chief executive in 2021.
Limp said in a blogpost on Monday, “it’s time” that he retired from the online retailer, adding that he wanted a change in perspective.
“I am not sure what that future is right now, with the notable exception that it won’t be in the consumer electronics space,” he said.
Amazon has cut jobs in the devices, services and gadgets division, which Limp oversaw, as part of its planned layoffs of about 27,000 positions in recent months.
According to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the departure earlier on Monday, the Echo device line, in particular, has proven more challenging to monetize.
Consumers have also soured on electronic devices in the past year, following a surge in demand fueled by the stay-at-home restrictions imposed during the pandemic.
“I remain excited and quite optimistic about the products and services we’re building in devices and services,” Jassy said on Monday, adding the company would name Limp’s successor soon.
Other high-profile exits at Amazon since Jassy’s appointment include Dave Clark, who oversaw the consumer division and built a delivery arm at the company to rival major cargo companies.
(Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
