Microsoft Appoints Indian-Origin AI Expert Asha Sharma as CEO of Microsoft Gaming
What is the news?
In a landmark leadership transition, Microsoft has named Asha Sharma as the new Executive Vice President and CEO of its Gaming division. Sharma, a prominent executive of Indian origin, takes over from Phil Spencer, who led the Xbox brand through its most transformative decade. This appointment places Sharma at the pinnacle of the global gaming industry, where she will manage an expansive portfolio that includes iconic franchises like Call of Duty, Halo, and Minecraft across nearly 40 internal studios.
Why is it interesting?
Sharma’s professional trajectory perfectly embodies the “Global Indian Alpha” narrative. Before this appointment, she served as Microsoft’s President of Core AI Product, where she oversaw the integration of generative AI across the company’s enterprise services. Her background also includes a successful tenure as Chief Operating Officer at Instacart where she guided the company through its IPO and leadership roles at Meta. Her expertise in scaling platforms that reach billions of users is viewed by Chairman Satya Nadella as “critical” for the next era of Xbox growth.
In her first address to the Microsoft Gaming team, Sharma emphasized a commitment to “great games” and the “future of play.” Notably, she addressed the intersection of gaming and artificial intelligence, promising to avoid “soulless AI slop” in favor of technology that enhances human-crafted art. As she steers Xbox toward a future that transcends hardware limits via cloud and mobile, Sharma’s leadership marks a significant milestone for the Indian diaspora in the global technology and entertainment sectors.
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