In a twist no one had on their 2025 tech bingo card, Andy Byron, the now-former CEO of data operations startup Astronomer, has officially resigned. His departure follows a viral moment from a Coldplay concert that sparked a whirlwind of memes, headlines, and workplace awkwardness.
Andy Byron, who is married, was spotted on the stadium “kiss cam” cozying up to Kristin Cabot, Astronomer’s Chief People Officer. The pair quickly ducked when the camera found them, but not before Coldplay’s frontman Chris Martin quipped, “Either they’re having an affair or they’re just very shy.” Internet: 1. Privacy: 0.
In just 24 hours, the internet exploded. Axios (citing Muck Rack) reported over 22,000 articles about Astronomer, with 9,000 focused squarely on Byron. Some called it hilarious. Others called it a social media surveillance nightmare. One outlet, 404 Media, summed it up as a peek into our “dystopian” online culture. Whatever your take, the damage was done, and very, very public.
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Astronomer, which just raised $93 million in Series D funding back in May, responded fast. Byron was put on leave, followed by Cabot. Stepping in as interim CEO? Cofounder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy.
Now, the company has confirmed Byron’s full exit.
Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met,” Astronomer said in a statement.
“Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space… While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not.”
For now, DeJoy is still in the captain’s seat while the board searches for a permanent CEO. And as for Cabot? She remains on leave, with no update yet on her future at the company. The internet never forgets, especially when there is a kiss cam involved. In a world where everything is content, even a night out at a concert can end in a career crash. So the real question is: Can any leader afford to go “off-duty” anymore?
