Tony Fadell Leaves Google's Nest, Hands CEO Reins To Marwan Fawaz
Fadell has been at the helm of Nest since it launched its first product, the Nest Learning Thermostat, in October 2011. But according to Fadell, now is the time to “leave the Nest.” However, there is no reason for panic cites the outgoing exec, as plans for his departure have been in place “since late last year.” Fadell also confirms that he will still be hanging around the Google campus to serve as an advisor to both Alphabet as a whole and to Larry Page.
As for current and future Nest products and services, they will be in good hands following Fadell’s exit. “The future of Nest is equally as bright given the strong and experienced leadership team in place, as well as the two-year product roadmap we’ve developed together to ensure the right future direction,” explains Fadell. “We’ve created a hardware + software + services ecosystem, which is still in the early growth stage and will continue to evolve to move further into the mainstream over the coming years.”
Taking over the helm of Nest will be Marwan Fawaz. Fawaz has previously served as Chief Technology Officer for Adelphia and Charter, and has also served as CEO of Motorola Home. Fawaz doesn’t exactly have the same star power as Fadell (who hailed from Apple), but he does have the background and experience to help push the company forward. And he of course has the backing of Page, who released the following statement:
Under Tony’s leadership, Nest has catapulted the connected home into the mainstream, secured leadership positions for each of its products, and grown its revenue in excess of 50% year over year since they began shipping products. He’s a true visionary and I look forward to continuing to work with him in his new role as advisor to Alphabet. I’m delighted that Marwan will be the new Nest CEO and am confident in his ability to deepen Nest’s partnerships, expand within enterprise channels, and bring Nest products to even more homes.
With Nest now behind him, that leaves time for Fadell to focus his energies on Actev Motors, a company that produces the Arrow Smart-Kart electric go-kart.
