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After rumors hit the internet last week that former Microsoft Surface and Windows head Panos Panay was heading to Amazon, the company has now confirmed that Panay will be joining its team as the head of its Devices and Services division.
In a brief post on Amazon’s press site, the company’s CEO Andy Jassy said this about Panay:
As a strong product builder and inventor who has deep experience in both hardware and integrated services, Panos will be a great addition to our D&S organization moving forward.
I remain quite excited about the invention happening and businesses that we’re building in D&S, and look forward to working with Panos.
Panos will officially join Amazon sometime at the end of October. He will be taking over the position from Dave Limp, who will retire from Amazon sometime before the end of the year. In his own statement, Limp said:
I’ve known Panos for years, and believe he will be a great addition to this organization moving forward. He is a passionate product leader and I can’t wait to see what all of you invent together. I’ll work diligently with him for the next two months to ensure a smooth transition through our fall launches and getting through our OP1 planning.
Panay made the unexpected announcement he was leaving Microsoft after 19 years earlier this month. He helped to launch the company’s Surface family of tablets, laptops, PCs, and even a dual-screen Android smartphone, the Surface Duo. He was named the head of the Windows division a few years ago and led the team while it created Windows 11.
Some unconfirmed reports claim Panay decided to depart Microsoft after the company decided to cut back development of some of its Surface devices that were not making money. It will be interesting to see what Panay can come up with while leading Amazon’s device team, as it usually concentrates on affordable tech gadgets rather than the more expensive products that the Surface lineup was known for.
