Helen Chiang, Xbox's first-ever chief operating officer, has left Microsoft just three months after taking on the role. The news comes from a short internal memo by Microsoft Gaming CEO Asha Sharma, obtained by The Verge, which simply states that Chiang is leaving the company and thanks her for her years of service. No reason was given, and Xbox's VP of communications, Kari Perez, said the company doesn't discuss individual personnel matters. There's no successor yet either, so Chiang's duties will be split among other Xbox leaders for now, with Sharma promising more details on COO leadership once plans are finalized.

Chiang had been at Microsoft for around 21 years, starting in 2005 and moving to Xbox in 2007, where Sharma credits her with helping build Xbox Live. She later led Mojang and became corporate vice president of the Minecraft franchise in 2020. Sharma created the COO position in July as part of her reset of Xbox, and it came with end-to-end profit and loss responsibility across content, hardware, platform, and services. That same reset includes around 3,200 job cuts by the end of fiscal year 2027, with hundreds of jobs already gone. Losing the executive meant to hold the whole business together this early into the reset probably isn't the kind of stability Xbox was hoping for.

Update Oct 25th: A verified source familiar with the situation has told Eurogamer that Helen Chiang was "terminated for policy violations." This claim has not been independently verified.

Update Nov 3rd: Helen Chiang has since denied being "fired for a policy violation" in a recent LinkedIn post. She goes on to clarify more points about her departure. You can read her full post below.

Helen Chiang, Former Xbox COOClarity is Kindness

There has been some speculation about my abrupt departure from Microsoft, including claims that I was "fired for a policy violation". That's not accurate and while I won't turn this into a play-by-play, silence should not be mistaken for agreement. What has been said about my departure, and what has been left unsaid, has created a picture of me that I hardly recognize. It's important to me to set the record straight.

First, I did not leak confidential company information to the press. I have never communicated with any journalist outside the limited, company-authorized interviews I've done as part of my job. That includes every journalist who reached out this week seeking my side of the story.

Second, I did not leave XBOX to join a competitor. You don't spend two decades somewhere without developing a deep loyalty to the people, teams, and businesses you've helped build. XBOX was never just another stop in my career. My end game was always to keep building here.

Third, I did not engage in discrimination, bullying, harassment, insider trading, embezzlement, or other fraudulent activity. I stand by my record: both the results I delivered and the way I have treated people throughout my career. I won't let speculation define my character or erase that record.

Lastly, I did not leave because I was passed over for a bigger role. Since having children, I've been intentional about how I define ambition and success. I haven't actively sought out bigger roles or increased responsibilities, and the last time I interviewed for a job was in 2011. My reputation and results paved the way for the opportunities that followed. I went where the company believed I was needed and where I could have the greatest impact. I did not ask for my most recent role, either. I was promoted into it in July.

I believe in fairness, accountability, and holding ourselves to the standards we expect of others. Those standards only mean something when they're applied consistently. I have serious concerns about how they were applied in my case, and I believe those concerns deserve to be taken seriously.

I share this because I don't want my departure reduced to an inaccurate story about incompetence, ambition for the next big job, or a Nelson-level scandal. My story is about staying true to your core values, especially when it is hard. That's the legacy I hope to leave behind.

To everyone who has reached out with hugs, love, and support: thank you. So many of you have reminded me of the wonderful times we've shared over the past 20 years and the impact we've had on one another. Some of you I haven't been in touch with for several years, yet you still took the time to check on me. Others are people I've never even met, but you reached out anyway. That speaks volumes about the care and humanity in our industry and the connections that transcend where we work.

This is not how I ever imagined my story here would end. And it is not the whole story.