Microsoft (MSFT) Names Asha Sharma Gaming CEO to Succeed Phil Spencer

Microsoft announced a leadership transition in its gaming division on February 20, 2026, resulting in the departure of Gaming CEO Phil Spencer and Xbox President Sarah Bond. Asha Sharma, previously president of Microsoft’s CoreAI product, has been appointed as the new Gaming CEO. The appointment signals a strategic pivot toward deeper artificial intelligence integration within the gaming unit. In an internal memo, Sharma stated that "monetization and AI" would shape the division's future but pledged to avoid "soulless AI slop," asserting that games remain human-crafted art. Microsoft has recently experimented with AI-generated game levels and companions. Sharma’s background includes executive roles at Instacart and Meta.