Amazon brings in microsoft's former copilot CTO to bolster its agentic AI efforts

Amazon has hired Pedram Rezaei, former CTO of Microsoft's Copilot, to strengthen its agentic AI initiatives. Rezaei joined AWS as a distinguished engineer in the Agentic AI and Emerging Technologies group, according to an email announcement. He previously spent two decades at Microsoft, most recently leading the Superintelligence team, and was Copilot's CTO until June. At Amazon, Rezaei will focus on Quick and Kiro, two key products in its AI agent strategy. Quick's user base grew fourfold in the second quarter, while Kiro's doubled. Amazon's VP of agentic AI, Swami Sivasubramanian, highlighted the strategic importance of Rezaei's expertise. Meanwhile, Microsoft is also undergoing leadership changes, with several high-profile executives set to leave, including Ryan Roslansky, who will depart by year-end.