Microsoft Says Xbox Chief Phil Spencer Not Retiring ‘Anytime Quickly’ After Hearsay Surfaces Amid Layoffs

Microsoft has dispelled rumours of Xbox chief Phil Spencer retiring within the wake of widespread layoffs on the firm. Spencer, who has led Xbox since 2014 and now serves as Microsoft Gaming CEO, won’t be retiring “anytime soon”, the corporate stated in an announcement after the most recent spherical of layoffs affected a number of Xbox studios and noticed a number of initiatives cancelled.

Xbox Boss Phil Spencer Not Retiring

Rumours of the Xbox chief retiring surfaced following a tipster’s declare on Wednesday. Call of Duty channel @TheGhostOfHope stated on X that Spencer could be retiring as Microsoft Gaming CEO after the launch of the next-generation Xbox, with Xbox president Sarah Bond taking up.

In an announcement shared with The Verge, Microsoft rejected the declare outright. “Phil is not retiring anytime soon,” Kari Perez, head of Xbox communications, instructed the publication. Microsoft communications chief, Frank Shaw, denied the hearsay on X, as effectively, calling the claims a fabrication.

Spencer, an trade icon who has been the face of Xbox for over a decade, joined the Xbox unit in 2001 after a number of roles at Microsoft. He was appointed as the pinnacle of Xbox, Xbox Live, Xbox Music, Xbox Video and Microsoft Studios in 2014 and promoted to Microsoft Gaming CEO in 2022.

Microsoft and Xbox Layoffs

The query of Spencer’s retirement got here up after Microsoft introduced Wednesday it was shedding 4 % of its workforce — over 9,000 workers. The newest spherical of retrenchment hit the corporate’s gaming division exhausting, with layoffs reported at a number of first-party studios, together with King, Raven Software, Sledgehammer Games, Rare, Halo Studios, Turn10 Studios and Zenimax Online Studios.

The Xbox dad or mum additionally cancelled the Perfect Dark reboot and shut down its developer, The Initiative. Other cancelled initiatives embrace Rare’s action-adventure title Everwild and Zenimax Online’s unannounced MMO. Xbox will even wind down a number of unannounced initiatives throughout its portfolio.

Confirming the layoffs on the gaming division, Spencer, in a memo to workers, stated the choice would guarantee Xbox’s continued success sooner or later.

“I recognize that these changes come at a time when we have more players, games, and gaming hours than ever before. Our platform, hardware, and game roadmap have never looked stronger,” Spencer stated within the inner memo. “The success we’re seeing currently is based on tough decisions we’ve made previously. We must make choices now for continued success in future years and a key part of that strategy is the discipline to prioritize the strongest opportunities.”