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Astronomer CEO Andy Byron resigned, the company said Saturday. He and his chief people officer, Kristin Cabot were being investigated by their board after after a video of them snuggled up took the internet by storm.
Astronomer, the tech company at the center of a viral internet controversy in which the married boss embraced his chief people officer at a Coldplay concert where it was featured on a jumbotron, said Saturday that CEO Andy Byron has resigned.
That came after the company announced launched a formal investigation and said he had been placed on leave.
“Andy Byron has tendered his resignation, and the Board of Directors has accepted,” the company said in a statement. “The Board will begin a search for our next Chief Executive as Cofounder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy continues to serve as interim CEO.”
Astronomer is a private data infrastructure and operations company that achieved unicorn status in 2022 with a $1 billion or more valuation.
The once-obscure company recently moved its headquarters to New York City, and secured $93 million in series D funding in a round led by Bain Capital Ventures and Salesforce Ventures.
“Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space, helping data teams power everything from modern analytics to production AI,” Astronomer said Saturday. “While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not. We’re continuing to do what we do best: helping our customers with their toughest data and AI problems.”
On Friday, the board said it would dig into the conduct of Byron and chief people officer Kristin Cabot and will reveal additional details soon, the company posted in a statement on LinkedIn and X.
At the time, the board placed Byron on leave, a spokesperson told Fortune, with DeJoy serving as interim CEO in the meantime.
“Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability,” the company’s announcement read. “The Board of Directors has initiated a formal investigation into this matter and we will have additional details to share very shortly.”
The response was posted to both platforms on Friday. It received more than 700 reactions on LinkedIn almost immediately. Astronomer clarified in its post that an employee speculated to have also been at the Boston Coldplay concert with Byron and Cabot was not at the event. The company similarly refuted any alleged statements circulated online said to have been made by Byron or Astronomer as incorrect.
Byron and Cabot’s concert hug rose to internet fame and sparked widespread affair allegations on Thursday after a clip, posted on TikTok, showed the CEO holding his subordinate in his arms at the Gillette Stadium show. Byron is seen in the video clutching Cabot from behind as the pair smiles and sways in the crowd. Coldplay frontman Chris Martin can be heard saying “Oh look at these two,” as they appear on the jumbotron, only for Cabot to quickly cover her face and turn away while Byron ducks to avoid the cameras.
Martin responded to their behavior, “Either they’re having an affair or they’re very shy” as the crowd cheered. The band played at the Boston venue on Tuesday and Wednesday night.
After the video went viral, it was revealed that Byron is legally married to Megan Kerrigan Byron. He and Kerrigan appear to have two sons. As for Cabot, public records suggest she has been married at least once. Her current marital status, however, could not be confirmed.
At many public and private companies, relationships between a CEO and another employee are prohibited because they can be viewed as coercive by their very nature. They can also disrupt morale and lead to allegations of unfair treatment.
Byron became CEO of Astonomer in 2023, whereas Cabot, according to her now-defunct LinkedIn, joined Astronomer in November 2024.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
The post The CEO caught hugging his HR chief at a Coldplay show has resigned after being placed on leave amid an investigation appeared first on Fortune.
