Stephen Lam/Reuters
Facebook’s chief product officer, Chris Cox, announced his departure Thursday in a blog post. Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that Cox—who joined the company in 2005—had discussed leaving Facebook for a few years but agreed to stay on and work on some of the website’s issues after 2016. His departure comes during tumultuous period for the tech company, which has been rocked by scandals and various inquiries from federal agencies. “I will really miss Chris, but mostly I am deeply grateful for everything he has done to build this place and serve our community,” Zuckerberg wrote.
According to The New York Times, Cox reportedly wrote to colleagues that the effects of social media were “not neutral” and they had to take up the “daily work of bending [the effects] towards the positive.” Additionally, head of WhatsApp, Chris Daniels, will also depart the company after months of overseeing the app after its founders left over disagreements with Zuckerberg. Will Cathcart will reportedly assume the role as WhatsApp’s head, and Zuckerberg stated he did not have any immediate plans to appoint a successor to Cox.