A leadership shake-up at Microsoft’s gaming arm sparked online backlash, with gamers accusing the company of “Indian nepotism” after it named AI executive Asha Sharma as the new head of Xbox.Microsoft Corp confirmed that Sharma will take over as chief executive of its gaming division, replacing Xbox boss Phil Spencer, who is retiring. Xbox President Sarah Bond is also set to leave, while games studios chief Matt Booty will become chief content officer, reporting to Sharma. The announcement was made by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in a blog post on Friday.Sharma most recently served as President of Core AI Product at Microsoft and was selected for her consumer and product expertise. She previously held senior roles at Instacart and Meta, and has also sat on the boards of The Home Depot and Coupang. Earlier in her career, she worked in Microsoft’s marketing department before leaving in 2013, only to return two years ago in a senior AI leadership role.However, the appointment has triggered criticism on X, where several users questioned her lack of direct experience in the gaming industry. One user wrote: “Asha Sharma, the new head of Xbox, is an AI executive with no background in gaming.”Another user said that her appointment aligns with the trend of Indians “stealing” American jobs in the US: “Microsoft is literally just indian nepotism now. That’s the whole company. Have you wondered why they rolled out an update that bricked hundreds of thousands of computers? Why OneDrive doesn’t work but keeps enabling itself? Why an instacart employee is handling gaming? Indian nepotism. That’s the whole company now.”A further comment read: “I’m sure I need 6 years of software development experience, a 4.0 GPA at a top university, and 20 side projects to get a minimum wage internship at Microsoft, but the CEO knows nothing about video games.” Another user asked: “Why is every American tech company run by Indians now?”The criticism comes amid political debate in the United States, particularly among sections of the MAGA conservative base, where Indian-origin executives and the H1-B visa programme have come under scrutiny. High-profile Indian-origin figures such as FBI director Kash Patel, second lady Usha Vance and former DOGE lead Vivek Ramaswamy have also drawn attention. Several users also took a closer look at Sharma’s professional history. One post circulating on X reproduced details from her LinkedIn profile and claimed she had “Never held a postion for more than 4 years (climbing the corp ladder)”. The post pointed to her previous roles to question the depth of her long-term leadership experience.Some of the users defended the decision of Microsoft, arguing that a chief executive does not need to design or play video games to run a gaming business and that the hate against Asha stems from racism against Indians. Microsoft’s gaming division has faced a difficult decade. After strong competition with Sony and Nintendo, the previous CEO, Spencer, admitted in 2024 that the 2013 Xbox One “lost the worst generation to lose.” The company has spent heavily on acquisitions, including a $69 billion purchase of Activision Blizzard, in a push to expand beyond consoles into PC and mobile gaming. It has also laid off more than 2,500 gaming employees since 2024 and shut several studios.In an email to staff, Sharma said: “We will recommit to our core Xbox fans and players, those who have invested with us for the past 25 years, and to the developers who build the expansive universes and experiences that are embraced by players across the world,” she wrote. She added: “We will celebrate our roots with a renewed commitment to Xbox starting with console, which has shaped who we are.”
