New York City, July 18 (EFE).- US tech company Astronomer has placed its CEO Andy Byron on leave after he was shown on a “kiss cam” embracing the company’s human resources chief during a Coldplay concert in Boston.
In a statement on Friday, Astronomer said co-founder and chief product officer Pete DeJoy is “serving as interim CEO given Andy Byron has been placed on leave.”
Earlier in the day, the company also said it had opened “a formal investigation” into the matter, in which Byron and the company’s Chief People Officer Kristin Cabot, who is not his wife, hide from the camera after realizing they are being shown to the crowd via a big screen.
“Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability,” the company said.
It also clarified that Byron had not released a personal statement, dispelling one circulating on social media that claimed to be, and that its senior director of people, Alyssa Stoddard, was not at the concert, refuting claims that she was the “embarrassed woman” shown next to them in the footage.
In the concert video, Byron is shown on the big screen cuddling Cabot from behind. The pair realize they’re being beamed to the crowd and Byron ducks down while Cabot covers her face with her hands and turns her back to the camera.
“Whoa, look at these two,” Coldplay singer Chris Martin said. “Either they’re having an affair or they’re just very shy.”
Social media sleuths quickly identified the pair and the clip went viral with tens of millions of views, sprouting a slew of memes poking fun at the incident. EFE
