J Allard, the co-founder of Xbox, has officially joined Amazon as vice president of devices and services.
As reported by GeekWire, the first sign of Allard’s career change came from his LinkedIn profile where his latest role was updated to read “vp, product – amazon”.
Amazon has since confirmed the news to the publication, stating that Allard has joined the company’s Devices and Services team, the division responsible for Alexa and Echo devices, among other products.
Speaking to The Verge, Allard confirmed his new role but was unable to discuss the projects he’ll be working on, saying it’s “too early to have anything to say” beyond Amazon’s “new ideas”.
Allard worked at Microsoft from 1991 to 2010. As chief experience officer and chief technology officer of Microsoft’s entertainment and devices division, he co-founded Xbox, which was released in 2001, Xbox Live, Live Arcade, and 2005’s Xbox 360.
He also helped launch more than 40 products at the company, including the Zune portable media player, as well as had a hand in Windows NT and Microsoft’s Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP).
After leaving Microsoft in 2010, Allard spent time running his own company called Project 529, a community-led service that specializes in combating bike theft and promoting cycling.
Allard rejoined the gaming industry in 2020 at Intellivision Entertainment as the global managing director but left the company a year later.
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