The news Tuesday that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos would be stepping down from his role as CEO later this year drew a huge social media response, with a variety of users reacting to the development and offering up armchair analysis of what it all could mean for the tech giant and the billionaire boss.
Some speculated on what type of leader Bezos’ successor Andy Jassy will be, and how Jassy’s impressive run as head of Amazon Web Services will inform his heading up of the entire company.
Twitter, which really hasn’t perked up this much since Donald Trump was banned from the platform near the end of his presidency, was true to its Twitter self, too. So there was a healthy dose of reaction just poking fun at the news.
Here are some of the highlights:
The leaders of fellow tech giants offered up their best wishes, including Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai.
https://twitter.com/satyanadella/status/1356722820575756291
https://twitter.com/sundarpichai/status/1356717360841773057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Amazon chief technology officer Werner Vogels was among those who praised Jassy, calling him “the absolute best person to lead the company.” Tech journalist Kara Swisher also said Jassy will be “much more open and less idiosyncratic” than Bezos.
https://twitter.com/Werner/status/1356722121142116352
https://twitter.com/karaswisher/status/1356722589956272129
Others speculated on the move and what it could mean for how much Bezos will stay connected to Amazon, what other projects he’ll focus on, and more.
https://twitter.com/ShiraOvide/status/1356712161821790209?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1356712161821790209%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fstaging.geekwire.com%2F2021%2Famazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-step-year-replaced-aws-chief-andy-jassy%2F
https://twitter.com/danprimack/status/1356712029088841738?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1356712029088841738%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fstaging.geekwire.com%2F2021%2Famazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-step-year-replaced-aws-chief-andy-jassy%2F
https://twitter.com/Kantrowitz/status/1356711139309051909?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1356711139309051909%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fstaging.geekwire.com%2F2021%2Famazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-step-year-replaced-aws-chief-andy-jassy%2F
https://twitter.com/reckless/status/1356714044175048710?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1356714044175048710%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fstaging.geekwire.com%2F2021%2Famazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-step-year-replaced-aws-chief-andy-jassy%2F
https://twitter.com/teddyschleifer/status/1356714479321407491?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1356714479321407491%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fstaging.geekwire.com%2F2021%2Famazon-ceo-jeff-bezos-step-year-replaced-aws-chief-andy-jassy%2F
https://twitter.com/jaminball/status/1356715582423322625
Others on Twitter focused on getting in their digs or just having a little fun at the expense of one of the richest people on the planet. Bezos’ position of wealth and power — as well as Amazon’s — has made the founder and his company an easy target for years. Lex Luthor, the bald comic book supervillain who some say shares a likeness to Bezos, was trending on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/BrandyLJensen/status/1356716702822764547
https://twitter.com/PhillyD/status/1356717314054348809
https://twitter.com/morningmoneyben/status/1356716816446468096
https://twitter.com/JustinMcElroy/status/1356719150702481408
https://twitter.com/JadenMovies/status/1356716394256105475
https://twitter.com/drewmagary/status/1356715992215396357
https://twitter.com/haymarketbooks/status/1356714809081925635
https://twitter.com/RadishHarmers/status/1356717059233693698
https://twitter.com/thewritertype/status/1356720683313733633
https://twitter.com/arya_kidding_me/status/1356713554473340939