Astronomer co-founder speaks out on Coldplay controversy after CEO Andy Byron resigns

The co-founder of Astronomer has broken his silence after the company's ex-CEO and HR head were allegedly spotted on kiss cam at a Coldplay gig.

Coldplay's lead singer Chris Martin inadvertently outed Andy and HR chief Kristin Cabot at their concert in Massachusetts. The business mogul was seemingly oblivious to all but the music as he embraced the woman from behind, moving in sync with the band's live performance.

Yet, as soon as they realised their cuddle was being broadcast on the big screen, they abruptly disentangled themselves, hurriedly trying to duck out of the spotlight. When Chris humorously remarked after spotting them on the big screen, "Oh look at these two. Either they are having an affair or they're just really shy," he unwittingly hit the nail on the head.

READ MORE: Andy Byron's firm slams 'fake statement' after awkward Coldplay kiss cam moment

Ry Walker, who set up the data firm in 2015, took to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, to air his views following the emergence of a video showing CEO Andy Byron and Head of HR Kristin Cabot on the concert's kiss cam.

"I've only spoken to Andy once, on a call," Walker shared. "I've found Andy to be professional. Everyone on the team has praised his leadership to me. So I think this is an unfortunate development that comes as a big surprise."

Walker went on to explain that he helmed Astronomer as its CEO from its inception until 2019, when it began to pick up steam. Although he continued as a board member for several years, he distanced himself from the company in 2022 to focus on Tembo, his new business endeavour.

Byron stepped into the CEO shoes in 2023, with Cabot coming aboard the HR department in 2024. Upon her appointment, Byron lauded her "exceptional leadership" in a statement, while Cabot expressed being "energized in my conversations with Andy" regarding the prospects at Astronomer, reports the Mirror US.

The recent furore kicked off when Grace Springer shared a video on Wednesday of Coldplay's frontman Chris Martin urging the crowd to watch as a couple were caught on the kiss cam. The footage shows Byron and Cabot sitting snugly together before swiftly separating upon realising they were being broadcasted on the jumbotron.

On Saturday morning, it was disclosed that Byron had stepped down from his position.

The company said in a statement shared on LinkedIn and X: "As stated previously, Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met. Andy Byron has tendered his resignation, and the Board of Directors has accepted.

"The Board will begin a search for our next Chief Executive as Cofounder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy continues to serve as interim CEO. Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space, helping data teams power everything from modern analytics to production AI.

"While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not. We're continuing to do what we do best: helping our customers with their toughest data and AI problems."

Byron has been the CEO of the software development company since July 2023. Astronomer is reportedly worth more than $1.3billion (£1b). The Economic Times suggest his net worth stands anywhere between $20million (£14.8m) and $70million (£52m).