Amazon’s devices chief is stepping down this year

David Limp is set to step down from his role as head of Amazon’s consumer devices division later this year. Amazon has confirmed the news with TechCrunch, following a Wall Street Journal report.

Limp has been the company’s Senior Vice President of devices and services for more than 13 years. In the role he has headed up the division that includes the Echo/Alexa, along with products like Amazon’s line of Fire tablets.

The move follows widespread reports that its massive bets on the smart home haven’t paid off the way it was clearly hoping. In November, the division was reported to be operating at a staggering $5 billion a year revenue loss. It was among those departments heavily hit by widespread layoffs. All told, Amazon has slashed around 27,000 roles, as CEO Andy Jassy has implemented cost cutting measures amid economic headwinds.

“Dave will remain in his role for the next few months, and we’ll announce his successor in the coming weeks,” Jassy notes. “I remain excited and quite optimistic about the products and services we’re building in Devices and Services—we’re at the relative beginning of what’s possible and what I believe these businesses will add for customers and the company.

Nevertheless, Jassy and Co. have insisted that the company is committed long term to consumer hardware generally and the Echo line specifically. Last week, Amazon revealed that Alexa head Rohit Prasad would be heading up expanded efforts to remain competitive in white hot generative AI and large language model efforts.

Limp addressed the news in a blog post today, stating “It’s time.”

He adds:

I have been doing a version of this job (building and shipping consumer electronics) on and off for 30+ years. I love it, but I also want look into the future through a different lens. I am not sure what that future is right now, with the notable exception that it won’t be in the consumer electronics space. I will be around for a few more months and we have a lot to deliver on with our fall products. Given that, you should expect the same bug reports from me for a little while more.

The company is set to reveal a news lineup of devices on September 20 at an event in Arlington, Va., the site of its secondary HQ2 offices.

Prior to his nearly 14 years at Amazon, Limp worked at Apple and Palm.

“Under Dave’s leadership, Amazon has become one of the world’s leading innovators in building devices and underlying services that customers love,” says Jassy. “From Kindle readers to Fire TV to Alexa and Echo, over the past decade and a half we’ve been able to invent and keep improving experiences that help make our customers’ lives better every day.”