New Xbox CEO Asha Sharma Says Phil Spencer Was a 'Remarkable Leader' and 'Remarkable Human Being' - News
by William D'Angelo , posted on 25 February 2026 / 1,859 Views
New Microsoft Gaming CEO Asha Sharma in a post on social media paid tribute to Phil Spencer, the former Xbox boss before she took over this week, saying he was a "remarkable leader" and a "remarkable human being."
Microsoft announced last Friday that Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer has retired and Xbox President Sarah Bond has resigned. Matt Booty was promoted to Chief Content Officer, while the President of Microsoft’s CoreAI product Sharma has taken over Spencer's role.
"Today Matt and I had the chance to recognize Phil Spencer," said Sharma. "Over the past couple of months, we’ve talked nearly every day about everything from hardware and strategy to creators and culture… and plenty about our kids and dogs, too.
"Those conversations gave me a front row seat to what so many of you have known for decades. Phil is a remarkable leader, but even more than that, he’s a deeply remarkable human being.
"When he took over Xbox in 2014, it was a pivotal moment. He pushed for backward compatibility because players asked for it. He helped bring Xbox One X to life. He created Game Pass. And through it all, he re-centered our decisions around players and creators.
"A lot of careers get summed up by milestones. Phil’s impact shows up in stories. In the creators who felt safe taking risks, in the teams who did the best work of their lives because someone believed in them, and in players across generations who felt like Xbox was theirs.
"I’ll always remember this day. I’m proud to be part of Team Xbox. Now our journey begins."
A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can follow the author on Bluesky.
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Psyched for my daily "yes, we are in the games business" post from xbox
Wait a minute, are they using AI to make these statements?
That would explain why they feel so soulless.
Maybe.
On the other hand, it isn't that different from the usual meaningless corpo bullshit.
Less is more.
Feels like the stuff they’ve said the last few days should have come out all together in a single statement.
Now its all just meaningless waffle.
Remarkable lie.
Will go down as one of the best in the industry
