Peter DeSantis Takes the Helm: Amazon AI Chief Rohit Prasad Steps Down

Rohit Prasad, the executive overseeing Amazon’s artificial intelligence projects and the development of Nova AI models, will be leaving the company by the end of the year.

Amazon CEO Andy Jassy announced in a memo that Peter DeSantis, a long-time Amazon employee and cloud infrastructure executive, will lead a new organization merging Nova and model research teams with custom silicon and quantum computing.

AI researcher Pieter Abbeel, part of the team hired from robotics startup Covariant, will head the frontier model research team within Amazon’s AGI organization while continuing work with the robotics team.

Prasad’s exit follows Amazon’s recent unveiling of its Nova 2 models at the re:Invent conference, as the company aims to catch up with AI competitors like OpenAI and Google.

Jassy’s reorganization plan aims to consolidate Amazon’s key AI initiatives amid a crucial moment for the technologies, combining expansive AI models like Nova and AGI with custom silicon development and quantum computing efforts.

DeSantis, reporting directly to Jassy, has spearheaded major technical projects at Amazon, including launching Amazon EC2 and overseeing strategic acquisitions.

Jassy praised DeSantis as a leader with exceptional technical expertise and a history of pushing the boundaries of what’s technically feasible.

Prasad’s departure was highlighted in Jassy’s memo, acknowledging his contributions and leadership in building a strong team and innovative technology at Amazon.

Amazon’s enterprise AI position has been solidified through its Bedrock platform and competitive Nova models, with the recent launch of Nova Forge enabling customization of models using proprietary data.

While Amazon excels in certain AI areas, it is seen as a follower in generative AI compared to rivals like OpenAI and Google. The company has collaborated with Claude maker Anthropic to counter Microsoft’s OpenAI partnership.

Recent reports suggest Amazon is in talks to invest in OpenAI, indicating a potential strategic shift in the AI landscape.

In an interview at re:Invent, Prasad emphasized the practical applications of AI and the importance of developing intelligent systems tailored for specific purposes.