MASSACHUSETTS, July 20 — Andy Byron has stepped down as CEO of Astronomer Inc. after a viral video captured him in an intimate moment with the company’s Chief People Officer, Kristin Cabot, during a Coldplay concert earlier this week.
In a statement posted to LinkedIn on Saturday, the data technology firm confirmed Byron’s resignation, saying company leaders “are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met.” The board accepted Byron’s resignation after he was placed on leave Friday. Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy has been appointed interim CEO.
The controversy erupted after Byron and Cabot were shown on the “kiss cam” during Wednesday’s concert at Gillette Stadium. The clip, which quickly went viral, showed the two embracing before visibly reacting to the camera — Byron ducked out of view while Cabot covered her face and turned away.
Neither Byron nor Cabot has made a public statement, but the company confirmed that they were the only Astronomer employees involved. A spokesperson for the company declined to comment on Cabot’s employment status.
Social media users swiftly identified the pair through their public profiles. Coldplay’s lead singer Chris Martin, watching the scene unfold live, jokingly told the crowd, “Either they’re having an affair or they’re just very shy.”
The video ignited intense speculation online, with questions raised about workplace ethics, power dynamics, and the fallout of personal actions in public spaces. Byron, who had been leading Astronomer through a phase of rapid growth and investor confidence, had previously been regarded as a key figure in the firm’s expanding role in data orchestration tools.
Astronomer Inc. is based in the U.S. and is known for its enterprise data infrastructure products built around Apache Airflow. The company has not announced any internal investigation, but its swift leadership change signals an effort to manage reputational risk in the wake of the public incident.
