Asha Sharma

Asha Sharma (born 1989) is an American business executive who serves as executive vice president (EVP) and chief executive officer (CEO) of Xbox. She succeeded Phil Spencer on February 20, 2026. Previously, Sharma served as President of Microsoft's CoreAI product.

Early life Sharma was born in Racine, Wisconsin, in 1989. She is of Indian descent. Her parents were divorced, and her mother worked at a department store. As a teenager, Sharma worked on a golf course. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota, graduating in 2011. While she was a student, Sharma launched and led a center for at-risk teenagers called the A-list in Brooklyn Park, which closed soon after her departure.

Career Sharma began her career at S.C. Johnson at the age of 17. After graduating from the University of Minnesota, she joined the marketing department at Microsoft in 2011, before joining the startup home services company Porch in 2013. She remained at Porch into 2017 as its chief operating officer (COO). She formally joined Instacart in June 2021. While Sharma was COO, Instacart underwent an initial public offering in September 2023 at $42 per share with Sharma's shares worth $19 million.

Return to Microsoft Sharma returned to Microsoft in February 2024 to serve as President of the CoreAI division. On February 20, 2026, Sharma was announced as executive vice president and CEO of Microsoft Gaming following the retirement of Phil Spencer. Her selection came as a surprise, passing over Spencer's second-in-command Sarah Bond. Sharma received scrutiny for having no professional experience in the video game industry prior to her appointment to lead Xbox. Sharma's history in user acquisition was a primary motivator for her selection, as Xbox has seen declining console sales over recent years. In a statement following her appointment, Sharma promised to "recommit to our core Xbox fans and players" and "not chase short-term efficiency or flood our ecosystem with soulless AI slop".

Under Sharma, Xbox lowered the price of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and wound down the development of Copilot on Xbox consoles and on the Xbox app. She received praise from IGN for the price cut and for discontinuing the "This is an Xbox" marketing campaign.

In July 2026, Sharma announced what she described as "the most significant restructure in Xbox history", involving approximately 3,200 job cuts during fiscal year 2027, including 1,600 immediate role eliminations. In an email to employees, she said the business was "not healthy", was operating at margins "3–10x lower than comparable platform and publishing businesses", and that Microsoft "must reset Xbox". The restructuring also included Compulsion Games and Double Fine Productions becoming independent, Ninja Theory and Undead Labs entering agreements to move to new ownership, and Arkane entering consultation over a potential sale or spin-off.

Federal Reserve Productivity and Jobs Task Force Sharma was appointed to the United States Federal Reserve's Productivity and Jobs Task Force in June 2026 to advise on the economic impact of artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies on employment and productivity.

Board memberships As of 2026, Sharma was serving as a board member at Coupang, Home Depot and Paley Center for Media. She previously served as a board member at Porch, Seattle Foundation, and Virginia Mason Medical Center. Personal life Sharma is a second-degree black belt in taekwondo. She has a son. She has cited Indian-American businesswoman Indra Nooyi as an inspiration. Sharma posted in 2026 that she had recently begun playing video games under the gamertag AMRAHSAHSA to "learn and understand" the games industry.