logo
What to know about the CEO caught embracing an employee on the jumbtron at a Coldplay concert

What to know about the CEO caught embracing an employee on the jumbtron at a Coldplay concert

The Hill5 days ago
LONDON (AP) — A routine moment of crowdwork at a Coldplay concert went viral last week when a couple tried to avoid the spotlight after they were caught hugging on the jumbotron. Internet sleuths quickly figured out that they were the CEO and chief people officer of a little-known tech company called Astronomer.
The snippet of video set the internet alight, fueling a wave of memes and drawing attention to the erosion of privacy in public spaces.
Here are some things to know:
What happened at the concert
During the concert on Wednesday at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, lead singer Chris Martin asked the cameras to scan the crowd for his 'Jumbotron Song,' when he sings a few lines about the people the camera lands on.
A man wearing a birthday sash was up first. Two people in banana costumes were highlighted.
But in between, something unexpected happened. For several seconds, a couple was shown on the big screen. They were cuddling and smiling, his arms wrapped around her, as she leaned back into him.
When they saw themselves on the big screen, her jaw dropped, her hands flew to her face and she spun away from the camera. He ducked out of the frame, as did she.
'Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy,' Martin joked.
It didn't end there.
Who was involved
After the video went viral, the internet got to work.
Online sleuths rapidly figured out that the man was Andy Byron, chief executive officer, while she was Kristin Cabot, the chief people officer — in other words, the head of human resources.
Astronomer, based in New York, provides big companies with a platform that helps them organize their data.
The company at first said little about the incident. In response to an initial inquiry from The Associated Press, Astronomer's spokesman said only that a statement attributed to Byron that circulated online immediately after the incident was a 'fake from a clearly labeled parody account.'
The company later confirmed the identities of the couple in a statement to AP.
What happened to the CEO
In the hours after the video went viral, Byron's name was at one point the most searched term on Google.
Astronomer eventually addressed the situation, announcing in a LinkedIn post late Friday that Byron had been placed on leave and that the board of directors had launched a formal investigation.
The company said a day later that Byron had resigned, and that its cofounder and chief product officer, Pete DeJoy, was tapped as interim CEO while it searches for Byron's successor.
'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, and recently, that standard was not met,' the company said in its post on LinkedIn.
DeJoy weighed in on Monday how the company was thrust into the spotlight.
'The events of the past few days have received a level of media attention that few companies—let alone startups in our small corner of the data and AI world — ever encounter,' he wrote on Linkedin. 'The spotlight has been unusual and surreal for our team and, while I would never have wished for it to happen like this, Astronomer is now a household name.
Why you should read those warnings about being filmed
It's easy to miss, but most concert venues have signs informing the audience that they could be filmed during the event. Look for them on the walls when you arrive and around the bar areas or toilets. It's common practice especially when bands like to use performances for music videos or concert films.
The venue in this case, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, also has a privacy policy online which states: 'When you visit our location or attend or participate in an event at our location, we may capture your image, voice and/or likeness, including through the use of CCTV cameras and/or when we film or photograph you in a public location.'
What it says about privacy
In the internet age, such videos — or ones taken on someone's smartphone — can quickly zip around the world.
This video rocketed around social media, as people speculated about why the couple dodged the camera.
Empathy for the pair and their families was mixed with plenty of snarky commentary and countless memes, with the fake statement from the chief executive generating a lot of additional vitriol. And news reports said that Byron's LinkedIn account was disabled after it was flooded by a wave of comments.
'It's a little bit unsettling how easily we can be identified with biometrics, how our faces are online, how social media can track us — and how the internet has gone from being a place of interaction, to a gigantic surveillance system,' said Mary Angela Bock, an associate professor in the University of Texas at Austin's School of Journalism and Media. 'We are being surveilled by our social media. They're tracking us in exchange for entertaining us.'
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Company at heart of Coldplay viral video releases tongue-in-cheek clip - with a big twist
Company at heart of Coldplay viral video releases tongue-in-cheek clip - with a big twist

Yahoo

time4 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Company at heart of Coldplay viral video releases tongue-in-cheek clip - with a big twist

The company at the centre of a viral video at a Coldplay concert has released a tongue-in-cheek clip on social media - featuring Gwyneth Paltrow as a "temporary spokesperson". Astronomer was thrust into the spotlight after two of the tech firm's senior executives were filmed embracing on a kiss cam during a gig in Boston. Andy Byron subsequently resigned as chief executive officer - while the woman in the video, Kristin Cabot, stepped down as chief people officer a few days later. Paltrow, who used to be married to Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, is seen sitting at a desk in the new video uploaded to X - and begins by thanking the public for their interest in Astronomer. She adds: "I've been hired on a very temporary basis to speak on behalf of the 300-plus employees at Astronomer. "Astronomer has gotten a lot of questions over the last few days - and they wanted me to answer the most common ones." A question is then typed out on the screen that reads: "OMG, what the actual…" Before the final word appears, the video cuts back to Paltrow, who goes on to promote some of the services Astronomer offers. In a subtle nod to the countless column inches the company has attracted, Paltrow adds: "We've been thrilled so many people have a newfound interest in data workflow automation." Another question then pops up on screen, which begins to type out: "How is your social media team holding up?" But before the sentence fully appears, Paltrow abruptly interrupts by declaring that Astronomer has spaces at an upcoming conference in September. "We'll now be returning to what we do best: delivering game-changing results for our customers," she adds at the end of the video. The marketing stunt is a sign that Astronomer is trying to put a positive spin on the scandal, which sparked feverish speculation online. After Mr Byron resigned, the company had said in a statement: "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, and recently, that standard was not met." Pete DeJoy, who has taken over as interim CEO, admitted on Monday that the company has faced an "unusual and surreal" amount of attention in recent days. On LinkedIn, he wrote: "While I would never have wished for it to happen like this, Astronomer is now a household name."

Alec Baldwin talks his love for 'Peanuts' and the 'immeasurable' effects of his trial
Alec Baldwin talks his love for 'Peanuts' and the 'immeasurable' effects of his trial

San Francisco Chronicle​

time4 hours ago

  • San Francisco Chronicle​

Alec Baldwin talks his love for 'Peanuts' and the 'immeasurable' effects of his trial

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Alec Baldwin says the year since his trial suddenly ended with a dismissal has been far better than the few years that preceded it, and the affect that time has had on him has been 'immeasurable.' 'Something as powerful as that happens in your life, you don't know how much it changes you,' he said. 'I can't even tell you how different I am from three-and-a-half years ago. And what I want and what I don't want, and how I want to live my life and not live my life.' The 67-year-old actor spoke to The Associated Press at San Diego's Comic-Con International, where he was part of a panel on 75 years of Charles Schulz's 'Peanuts,' whose simplicity, existential philosophy and moral outlook have been very much on his mind. Baldwin spoke while a suited Snoopy character stood nearby after posing for photos with him. In a foreword Baldwin wrote for 'The Complete Peanuts 1977-1978,' he said while reading Schulz's newspaper comic strip every day as a child, he realized Charlie Brown, more than anyone, wanted the things he wanted. Chief among those wants are 'the desire to have friends and the desire to hold your friends close to you.' That hasn't changed in the years since. 'Come on, what man my age doesn't relate to Charlie Brown? If Charlie Brown was 67 years old, he'd be me, but he wouldn't have been stupid enough to have seven (small) children,' he said with a laugh. But he aspires to the qualities of a different character. 'Lucy. I want to be Lucy. Lucy is in charge. She's got it all figured out,' he said. 'She pauses for a moment of self-awareness, but not too long.' Baldwin said he admired Schulz's simple line drawings combined with the real circumstances of the characters, embodied by real children's voices when the animated holiday specials emerged in his childhood. 'It's so complicated and simple at the same time, which is what I think makes it beautiful,' he said. And he admired Schulz's willingness to embrace melancholy, and deeper darknesses, in stories about inner struggle that needed no villains. 'A dog sitting on top of a dog house would have the same impact on you as, like, Nietzsche, he said,' looking across the room at Snoopy. 'They should have named the dog Nietzsche.' Baldwin's career has had several distinct phases. Early on he played tough husbands and boyfriends in supporting roles including 'Married to the Mob' and 'Working Girl.' He moved on to heroic leading man in 'The Hunt for Red October' and 'The Shadow.' Downshifting to memorable character parts, he showed his gift for manly speeches in 'Glengarry Glen Ross' and 'The Departed,' and his comedy prowess in seven seasons of '30 Rock' and as a constant host and guest on 'Saturday Night Live.' In July 2024 his trial in New Mexico on an involuntary manslaughter charge in the 2021 shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Western 'Rust' fell apart halfway through. A judge dismissed the case on allegations authorities withheld evidence. 'I can't believe that happened on that day the way it happened,' he said. 'And it couldn't have been better for us in certain terms because of the malice and so forth and everything that's embodied in that whole situation.' The next phase is uncertain. He says he's 'just trying to move forward with my wife and my family.' He and wife Hilaria and their seven small kids recently appeared on the TLC reality series 'The Baldwins.' He says he has successfully sold his young ones on 'Peanuts,' especially the Halloween and Christmas specials, as he did with his now nearly 30-year-old daughter Ireland when she was young. He notices their personalities zig-zagging between the traits of Schulz's characters. 'They're Charlie Brown, now they're Snoopy, now they're Schroeder, now they're Linus, now they're Pig-Pen,' he said. 'They're Pig-Pen most of the time, I must say.' And their house is full of themed toys. He keeps a small Snoopy figure among the things in his office, a reminder to try to maintain 'love, kindness, patience.' "Peanuts are still kind of like, in that zone," he said. 'Let's just try to be good people.'

Astronomer hires Gwyneth Paltrow with a wink after 'kiss cam' viral video
Astronomer hires Gwyneth Paltrow with a wink after 'kiss cam' viral video

NBC News

time4 hours ago

  • NBC News

Astronomer hires Gwyneth Paltrow with a wink after 'kiss cam' viral video

Astronomer has hired Gwyneth Paltrow as a "temporary spokesperson" following the social media firestorm that involved two now-former company executives and a Coldplay concert 'kiss cam" last week. Paltrow appeared in a television-style spot on Astronomer's social media on Friday making a pitch for the company's everyday strengths. "Astronomer has gotten a lot of questions over the last few days, and they wanted me to answer the most common ones," said Paltrow, who split with Coldplay singer Chris Martin in 2014. Astronomer made headlines after internet sleuths identified its CEO and chief people officer as the man and woman seen embracing and then hiding their faces on a "kiss cam" at the July 16 concert. Both have since resigned. In the Astronomer video, Paltrow cut off a question that started with "OMG!" to emphatically say, "Yes, Astronomer is the best place to run Apache Airflow." "We've been thrilled so many people have a newfound interest in data workflow automation," she added. She interrupted another question — "How is your social media team holding ..." — to make a pitch for an Astronomer conference in September. Paltrow concluded, 'We will now be returning to what we do best — delivering game-changing results for our customers.' CEO Andy Byron resigned on July 19, and Chief People Officer Kristin Cabot followed on Thursday, according to statements from the company. Their body language after the camera captured them in an embrace led Martin to remark on stage, 'Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy.' Astronomer said afterward it was investigating the incident. 'Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability,' it said on July 18. The company confirmed Thursday that Cabot was the woman in the video. Neither she nor Byron have responded to requests for comment. Astronomer, a New York-based company, helps companies develop, grow, and analyze products using artificial intelligence.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store