Xbox is not for sale, says CEO Asha Sharma
Xbox is not for sale, Asha Sharma, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, told The New York Times. Twenty per cent of Xbox staff have lost their jobs and five studios have been divested since she took over in February. Sharma claims Xbox still reaches 500 million players monthly.
October 1, 2026 - 2:34 pm
Asha Sharma, 38, previously president of product in Microsoft’s CoreAI division and COO at Instacart, took over as Xbox CEO in February without prior video game experience.
In June, The Information reported that Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood considered spinning out Xbox. This month, both executives backed Sharma’s plans to overhaul the unit, with many analysts predicting an eventual spin-off, according to The Times.
Nadella expressed expectation that Sharma would return Xbox to growth in the next fiscal year. Xbox accounts for about 6% of Microsoft’s total profits.
Cuts and a reset
Sharma acknowledged the business was "not healthy" in a July letter to staff. Her tenure has seen 20% of Xbox employees lose their jobs and five studios divested. Microsoft plans to cut up to 3,200 Xbox jobs over its 2027 financial year.
In late September, Xbox announced 270 more job cuts, impacting teams behind Halo, Sea of Thieves, and Age of Empires.
Sharma aims to reach a billion people with Xbox games, using cloud gaming to expand into Africa, Latin America, and South Asia. The next Xbox console is codenamed Project Helix.