Free Agents

Below is a collection of every Free Agents article by The Information.
From left: Jennifer Salke, Adam Selipsky, Blake Chandlee and Sabrina Ellis. Photos via Getty, AP
Free Agents

Free Agents: Amazon, OpenAI, Google Execs Poised for Their Next Role

By The Information Staff · May 13, 2025 10:30am PDT
The nation’s biggest tech companies have reshuffled the ranks of their senior leaders in the last year. That means executives with decades of experience in enterprise software, digital ad sales and product development are newly or soon to be available for their next job. Below we have details on six leaders. They include Amazon Web Services’... The nation’s biggest tech companies have reshuffled the ranks of their senior leaders in the last...
Clockwise from top left: Chris Capossela, Andrej Karpathy, Sarah Friar, Paul Vogel, JuE Wong.
Free Agents

On the Market: OpenAI, Microsoft, Spotify and Nextdoor Leaders

By The Information Staff · Mar 4, 2024 6:00am PST · 1 comment
For many tech executives, the outbreak of Covid-19 turned into a leadership boot camp, requiring them to shepherd companies through the intense spike in demand for online shopping and entertainment and the painful slowdown in business that followed. A generation of tech executives is now leaving those companies with battle-honed skills. Our... For many tech executives, the outbreak of Covid-19 turned into a leadership boot camp, requiring...
Free Agents

On the Market: Executives With Experience at Amazon, Disney, Meta, TikTok

By The Information Staff · Oct 16, 2023 6:00am PDT
When times get tough, companies try diversifying into new areas—efforts that can be high risk for those who lead those initiatives. Several of the people on our latest list of Free Agents can testify to that, having departed their companies after new business ventures failed to immediately pay off. Jeremi Gorman spent a year at Netflix,... When times get tough, companies try diversifying into new areas—efforts that can be high...
Clockwise from top left: Julie Bornstein, Esther Crawford, Mark Hammond, Max Cutler, Kağan Sümer. Photos via Julie Bernstein, Robert Cowherd, Microsoft, Wikimedia and Kağan Sümer.
On the Market: The Founders Who Joined Microsoft, Spotify, Coinbase and Twitter
By The Information Staff · Mar 20, 2023 6:00am PDT
Clockwise from top left: Julie Bornstein, Esther Crawford, Mark Hammond, Max Cutler, Kağan Sümer. Photos via Julie Bernstein, Robert Cowherd, Microsoft, Wikimedia and Kağan Sümer.
Free Agents

On the Market: The Founders Who Joined Microsoft, Spotify, Coinbase and Twitter

By The Information Staff · Mar 20, 2023 6:00am PDT
Call them acqui-fires. Several founders who took positions at the bigger tech companies that bought their startups recently lost their jobs when layoffs rolled through Silicon Valley. That means managers and engineers who also have the entrepreneurial bug are now on the market. Twitter’s most recent round of job cuts included at least four... Call them acqui-fires. Several founders who took positions at the bigger tech companies that...
Image: Clockwise from top left: Andrej Karpathy, Jason Kilar, Jerome Pesenti, Vanessa Guthrie, Kayvon Beykpour, Andrew Shuman. Photos by Getty Images, Bloomberg and Belathée Photography
Free Agents

On the Market: Tesla, Meta, Twitter, Snap Executives

By The Information Staff · Oct 12, 2022 9:30am PDT
The senior ranks at tech companies are in flux. Layoffs, restructurings and canceled projects have led many experienced executives to the door. Others are simply ready for something new. In this latest installment of Free Agents, we profile six of them. Those on the market include Jerome Pesenti and Andrej Karpathy, former leaders at Meta... The senior ranks at tech companies are in flux. Layoffs, restructurings and canceled projects...
Alex Atallah, Aparna Chennapragada, Bill Qian, Michael Moro, and Rod Bolger.
Free Agents

On the Market: Crypto Execs From OpenSea, Paradigm and Binance

By Aidan Ryan and Akash Pasricha · Aug 24, 2022 6:00am PDT · 1 comment
This year’s dramatic slump in crypto prices left few parts of the industry unscathed. As the dust settles following a wave of layoffs, reorganizations and bankruptcies, seasoned crypto executives—including some who had only recently started their latest roles—are in the market for new gigs. And despite all the upheaval,... This year’s dramatic slump in crypto prices left few parts of the industry unscathed. As...
Clockwise from upper left: Doug Merritt, Beth Axelrod, Christine Moy, Stacy Minero, Carolyn Everson, Bozoma Saint John, Gabor Cselle, Ada Yeo
Free Agents

On the Market: Executives From Airbnb, Netflix and J.P. Morgan

By The Information Staff · Mar 24, 2022 6:33am PDT
In our latest installment of Free Agents, we’re highlighting trailblazers who are likely to continue making waves wherever they land next. They include Christine Moy, a J.P. Morgan executive who played a groundbreaking role at the intersection of Wall Street and crypto, and Doug Merritt, who as Splunk CEO led the company’s... In our latest installment of Free Agents, we’re highlighting trailblazers who are likely to...
Clockwise from upper left: Brian Brooks, Catherine Coley, Venkata “Murthy” Renduchintala, Brian Boland, Kirthiga Reddy and Janice Min
On the Market: Executives From Facebook, SoftBank, Intel and Binance.US
By The Information Staff · Oct 18, 2021 6:01am PDT
Clockwise from upper left: Brian Brooks, Catherine Coley, Venkata “Murthy” Renduchintala, Brian Boland, Kirthiga Reddy and Janice Min
Free Agents

On the Market: Executives From Facebook, SoftBank, Intel and Binance.US

By The Information Staff · Oct 18, 2021 6:01am PDT
The wave of job changes dubbed the Great Resignation includes top tech and media leaders. Executives who have left roles at Intel, SoftBank, Facebook and crypto exchange Binance.US in the last year are among those on the move. Some have been spending their time between jobs making personal investments and advising on corporate boards. One... The wave of job changes dubbed the Great Resignation includes top tech and media leaders....
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of Google, Microsoft and Facebook

By The Information Staff · May 18, 2021 6:00am PDT · 2 comments
The pandemic did little to interrupt the flow of tech and media executives moving in and out of senior roles. In The Information’s latest batch of Free Agents, we profile some top executives who are considering their next move. They include one of Microsoft’s senior officials, Google’s longtime payments chief and a co-founder... The pandemic did little to interrupt the flow of tech and media executives moving in and out of...
Clockwise from top-left: Jane Wiseman (photo courtesy of Netflix), Kevin Reilly (photo by Shutterstock), Nina Wolarsky (photo courtesy of Netflix), Sofia Chang (photo courtesy of WarnerMedia), Amy Emmerich (photo provided by Ms. Emmerich), Marc Debevoise (photo courtesy of CBS), Chris Spadaccini (photo courtesy of HBO)
Free Agents

On the Market: Entertainment Veterans From Old and New Media

By Jessica Toonkel and Tom Dotan · Dec 10, 2020 6:02am PST
This has been a year of upheaval for the entertainment industry as a combination of the pandemic-triggered freeze in business and the impact of cord cutting prompted several of the big companies to slash costs and trim their executive ranks. At the same time, streaming giant Netflix reshuffled key positions, as it routinely does, leading to some... This has been a year of upheaval for the entertainment industry as a combination of the...
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of TikTok, Netflix and Pinterest

By The Information Staff · Oct 5, 2020 9:15am PDT · 1 comment
At a time when corporations are being especially vigilant about their bottom line, some high-profile media and tech executives have found themselves without a job recently. Other industry leaders decided to seek out new ventures, either after being passed over for a top job or following a corporate merger.  In The Information’s latest... At a time when corporations are being especially vigilant about their bottom line, some...
Ted Tobiason, Rupal Shah Hollenbeck, Sebastian Gunningham, Marc Levoy, Lauren Dolgen. Tobiason photo: Lime; Hollenbeck photo: Neythri.org; Levoy photo: Florian Kainz
On the Market: Veterans of WeWork, Google, Viacom
By The Information Staff · May 27, 2020 11:37am PDT
Ted Tobiason, Rupal Shah Hollenbeck, Sebastian Gunningham, Marc Levoy, Lauren Dolgen. Tobiason photo: Lime; Hollenbeck photo: Neythri.org; Levoy photo: Florian Kainz
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of WeWork, Google, Viacom

By The Information Staff · May 27, 2020 11:37am PDT
Even before the coronavirus pandemic upended normal operations for many businesses, some high-profile tech companies, including Lime and WeWork, had been under strain. Top executives from both firms, as well as key figures at Google, Oracle and Viacom, left the companies and are considering their next moves. In The Information’s... Even before the coronavirus pandemic upended normal operations for many businesses, some...
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of WeWork, Zillow, Brandless and IBM

By The Information Staff · Feb 24, 2020 7:00am PST
Some heavy hitters in the tech and media world have left their jobs or are about to. The reasons behind the exits vary, but struggles within SoftBank and startups it has backed are driving a number of prominent departures. In The Information’s latest batch of Free Agents, we profile some of these industry leaders who are making major... Some heavy hitters in the tech and media world have left their jobs or are about to. The reasons...
Art by Jesse Howe.
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of Airbnb, SoftBank, Facebook and Microsoft

By The Information Staff · Nov 25, 2019 7:00am PST
A number of prominent tech and media executives left their jobs in recent months, for reasons ranging from a post-merger reorganization to business struggles to strategic differences with the top boss. In The Information’s latest batch of Free Agents, we profile some of these industry leaders who are between jobs. The group includes... A number of prominent tech and media executives left their jobs in recent months, for reasons...
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of Facebook, HBO and Coinbase

By The Information Staff · Jun 24, 2019 7:01am PDT
Prominent figures have left their jobs in tech, media and entertainment in recent months. Tensions in the upper ranks of such companies as Coinbase and Facebook led to some of the departures, while AT&T’s takeover of Time Warner prompted some other executive changes.The Information’s latest batch of Free Agents—industry... Prominent figures have left their jobs in tech, media and entertainment in recent months....
Art by Mike Sullivan
After Time Warner and Fox Sales, Entertainment Veterans Flood Job Market
By The Information Staff · Mar 15, 2019 6:31am PDT · 1 comment
Art by Mike Sullivan
Free Agents

After Time Warner and Fox Sales, Entertainment Veterans Flood Job Market

By The Information Staff · Mar 15, 2019 6:31am PDT · 1 comment
Two mega-entertainment deals, Disney’s $71 billion purchase of 21st Century Fox’s entertainment businesses and AT&T’S purchase of Time Warner, are putting a lot of veteran media executives on the job market. Just last week, AT&T announced the integration of the former Time Warner’s three main businesses, prompting... Two mega-entertainment deals, Disney’s $71 billion purchase of 21st Century Fox’s...
Art by Mike Sullivan
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of Facebook, Oath, ABC, Lyft

By The Information Staff · Dec 17, 2018 7:02am PST
As the year winds down, some prominent executives are considering their next move after having held jobs that have given them a front seat to the biggest recent developments in tech and media. The Information’s latest batch of Free Agents—industry leaders who are in between jobs, or about to be—looks at the careers and future... As the year winds down, some prominent executives are considering their next move after having...
From left: Marni Walden, Jan Koum, Anand Chandrasekher, George Strompolos, Kenny Tsai, Elliot Shmukler, Wendy Bahr, Peter Fernandez.
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of Verizon, Jump, Intel

By The Information Staff · Oct 4, 2018 7:02am PDT
Quite a few high-profile executives have left their jobs in tech and media in recent months, prompted both by mergers and acquisitions and separately by tensions at the top of big organizations such as Facebook. For our latest batch of Free Agents—well-known executives who might be available for hire—we profile the former chief... Quite a few high-profile executives have left their jobs in tech and media in recent months,...
Art by Mike Sullivan
Free Agents

On the Market: Veterans of Etsy, Chariot, Lyft

By The Information Staff · May 21, 2018 7:01am PDT · 1 comment
For our latest batch of Free Agents—high-profile executives who are in the job market, or might be soon—we profiled the former chief executives of Etsy and Chariot, a onetime top policy official at Lyft, and an Apple and Intel veteran who describes himself as retired “temporarily.”A couple became Free Agents after sudden... For our latest batch of Free Agents—high-profile executives who are in the job market, or...
Art by Matt Vascellaro.
Now Available: Veterans of Airbnb, Amazon, Uber
By The Information Staff · Dec 18, 2017 7:01am PST
Art by Matt Vascellaro.
Free Agents

Now Available: Veterans of Airbnb, Amazon, Uber

By The Information Staff · Dec 18, 2017 7:01am PST
Our latest installment of Free Agents include two veteran tech CEOs looking for new opportunities, as well as several mid-career executives with experience across the gamut of tech. The list features the former COO of Stitch Fix, a former engineering lead at Airbnb and a former international head at Uber. There’s also a former Quora ad... Our latest installment of Free Agents include two veteran tech CEOs looking for new...