Astronomer CEO Andy Byron Resigns Following Viral Coldplay Kiss Cam Drama: 'Our Leaders are Expected to Set the Standard'
Astronomer CEO Andy Byron has resigned from his position with the tech company following the drama surrounding the viral Coldplay concert kiss cam
The company's board of directors accepted the resignation, according to a statement shared on July 19
Cofounder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy is currently serving as interim CEOAndy Byron, the CEO of Astronomer, has resigned from his position with the tech company following the drama surrounding the viral Coldplay concert kiss cam.
After a couple went viral for their reaction to being spotted at the Gillette Stadium show in Foxboro, Mass., on Wednesday, July 16, a company spokesperson told PEOPLE on Friday, July 18, that Byron was "placed on leave" and cofounder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy was serving as interim CEO.
The tech company announced in an update on X on Saturday, July 19, that Byron "has tendered his resignation," and the board of directors has "accepted" it.
"As stated previously, Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding," Astronomer's latest statement read. "Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met."
"The Board will begin a search for our next Chief Executive as Cofounder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy continues to serve as interim CEO," the statement continued.
"Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space, helping data teams power everything from modern analytics to production AI. While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not," added the statement. "We're continuing to do what we do best: helping our customers with their toughest data and AI problems."
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Byron's resignation comes just days after the concert moment went viral on social media. In the footage, a couple — who were not identified — could be seen, with a man wrapping his arms around a woman.
After apparently realizing that they were on camera, the woman covered her face, while the man ducked down out of sight.
The reactions prompted Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin to joke that they might be having an 'affair."
"Oh, look at these two,' Martin, 48, said to the crowd as the couple hid. "All right, c'mon. You're okay.' The musician then added: "Oh, what? Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy.'
Per The Guardian, Martin attempted to address what went down later in the show as well. 'Holy s---,' he reportedly told the stadium crowd. 'I hope we didn't do something bad.'
Astronomer previously wrote on LinkedIn that its board "initiated a formal investigation into this matter" and would "have additional details to share very shortly," reiterating that its "leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability."
The company did not explicitly confirm the identities of anybody in the video at the time, and reported that statements made about "other employees" being present at the concert and featured in the video were incorrect.
Citing a source, Axios reported this week that the company's public response was delayed "due in part to Byron's slow resignation and exit package negotiations."
The company's spokesperson had no comment on the Axios story when reached by PEOPLE, and Byron has not responded to separate messages seeking comment. Efforts to reach the woman in the footage were previously unsuccessful.
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