Andy Byron has stepped down as CEO of AI company Astronomer, days after a video of him and Chief People Officer Kristin Cabot appearing on a ‘kiss cam’ at a Coldplay concert near Boston went viral.
The footage, captured at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, showed the two embracing before awkwardly slipping out of frame. Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, reacting in real time, joked: “Either they’re having an affair or they’re just very shy.” The moment quickly caught fire online, fuelling speculation – including rumours of an extramarital affair.
In response to the online storm, Astronomer placed Byron on leave. The company later clarified that the woman in the video was not Vice President of Human Resources Alyssa Stoddard, countering false claims. It also said Byron had not made any public comment, dismissing widely shared reports as “incorrect”.
On Saturday, Astronomer confirmed that Byron had officially resigned. “Our leaders are expected to model the highest standards of conduct and accountability – and recently, that standard was not upheld,” the company said in a statement. “Andy Byron has submitted his resignation, which the Board of Directors has accepted.”
Astronomer co-founder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy has been appointed interim CEO. The company added that a formal search is underway for Byron’s permanent successor. “While public attention may have shifted overnight, our mission remains the same – solving real-world problems in data and AI.”
ANDY BYRON-KRISTIN CABOT SCANDAL
The controversy began on Wednesday night during Coldplay’s performance at Gillette Stadium, when the kiss cam spotlighted a blonde woman and a silver-haired man – later identified as Cabot and Byron. As the woman covered her face and the man ducked away from the camera, their behaviour caught the attention of both the crowd and the band. The video quickly went viral.
Online sleuths soon identified the pair as Andy Byron – who is married to marketing executive Megan Kerrigan – and Kristin Cabot, who is married to Privateer Rum CEO Andrew Cabot.
In the days following, Astronomer launched an internal investigation and placed both executives on leave. “As previously stated, Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding,” the company said in its latest update confirming Byron’s resignation.
ALL ABOUT ANDY BYRON & KRISTIN CABOT
Andy Byron had been leading Astronomer as CEO since July 2023. The New York-based software firm is best known for Astro, its open-source data orchestration tool built on Apache Airflow.
Kristin Cabot joined the company as Chief People Officer in November 2024, overseeing HR operations including culture, talent development, and employee engagement.
Neither Byron nor Cabot has commented publicly on the incident. The company continues to maintain that Byron has not released a statement, contrary to ongoing social media chatter.