Mike Schroepfer, Facebook’s chief
technology officer of 13 years, has announced that he is stepping down from that role.
Schroepfer, who informed Facebook of his decision on Monday, will transition to a part-time role. Next
year, Andrew “Boz” Bosworth will succeed him as CTO.
Bosworth is currently head of Facebook’s hardware division.
As CTO, he will continue to oversee the Facebook
Reality Labs division and augmented- and virtual-reality initiatives — key components of Facebook’s business strategy going forward.
The company recently announced new smart glasses
in partnership with Rayban, as well as the latest generation of Portal video-calling devices.
In his new role as a “senior fellow,” Schroepfer will help grow AI projects, as well
as help recruit and develop technical talent, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted.
While the timing may be coincidental, the change in technology leadership follows the most recent wave of
negative revelations about the company’s platforms —
including The Wall Street Journal’s exposés on Instagram’s negative effects on teens’ mental health and Facebook’s use by Mexican drug cartels, and The
New York Times’ report on the company’s use of content seeded in Facebook’s News Feed to try to burnish its image.
It also comes as the company is publicly
acknowledging that Apple’s new iOS privacy controls are hurting the
performance of Facebook’s ads.