Andy Byron Steps Down Amid Public Backlash Over Embrace with HR Chief

Andy Byron, CEO of the New York-based tech startup Astronomer, has resigned following a viral incident at a Coldplay concert on July 16, 2025, where he was caught on a Jumbotron embracing the company’s Chief People Officer, Kristin Cabot. The company announced Byron’s resignation on Saturday, July 19, stating that he failed to meet the expected standards of conduct and accountability, prompting swift action from the board of directors.

The incident occurred during Coldplay’s performance at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, when the concert’s “Jumbotron Song” segment—a crowd-scanning tradition led by frontman Chris Martin—displayed Byron and Cabot in an intimate embrace. As the pair noticed themselves on the big screen, Cabot covered her face and Byron ducked out of view, sparking immediate speculation. Martin quipped to the crowd, “Either they’re having an affair, or they’re just very shy,” a comment that fueled the video’s viral spread, amassing over 45 million views on TikTok and millions more across X, Instagram, and other platforms.

Astronomer, a data infrastructure company known for its DataOps platform, initially responded on July 18 by placing Byron and Cabot on administrative leave and launching a formal investigation. The company’s statement on X emphasized its commitment to its founding values, noting, “Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met.” On Saturday, Astronomer confirmed that Byron had tendered his resignation, which the board accepted, and co-founder Pete DeJoy would serve as interim CEO while a search for a permanent replacement begins.

The video’s rapid spread triggered a flood of memes, fake statements, and online speculation, with some users on X, like @Abhinav05655123, noting the overnight shift in Astronomer’s public perception. Others, such as @yogijunior3, dubbed it the “Coldplay cheat” scandal. Reports indicate Byron is married, and his wife, Megan Kerrigan Byron, reportedly deactivated her Facebook account after it was inundated with comments about the incident. Cabot, who joined Astronomer in November 2024, has not commented publicly, and her LinkedIn profile was deactivated as of July 18.

The scandal has raised questions about workplace culture and executive accountability at Astronomer, which employs fewer than 500 people and recently raised $93 million in a Series D funding round. The company sought to refocus attention on its mission, stating, “Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space… While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not.”

Public relations experts, like Natalie Trice, described the incident as a “perfect viral moment” due to its emotional charge and ambiguity, while others criticized Astronomer’s delayed response, which allowed misinformation, including a fake apology attributed to Byron, to spread. The company clarified that no such statement was issued and corrected misidentifications of other employees in the video.

Byron’s resignation marks another high-profile case of a CEO stepping down over workplace relationship controversies, following examples like Norfolk“Southe”rn’s Alan Shaw and McDonald’s Steve Easterbrook. As Astronomer moves forward, the incident underscores the challenges of managing personal and corporate reputations in the age of viral media.