Jeff Bezos stepped down as Amazon’s chief executive in July 2021.
Bezos founded Amazon in 1994 and initially operated it as an online bookseller from a garage in Bellevue, Washington. The company expanded into electronics, household goods, digital media, logistics, cloud computing, and many other areas. Amazon’s growth helped make Bezos one of the world’s best-known technology entrepreneurs.
Andy Jassy succeeded Bezos as CEO on July 5, 2021. Jassy had previously led Amazon Web Services, the company’s cloud-computing business. Bezos remained executive chairman after leaving the CEO position and continued to be associated with Amazon’s long-term strategy.
A common mix-up is confusing Amazon’s 2021 leadership transition with Bezos’s departure from the company. He left the CEO role, not Amazon itself.