The CEO of an astronomy company was put on leave after a viral concert that sparked rumors of an affair

The board of Astronomers has opened an inquiry and placed Andy Byron, the CEO, on leave following a widely shared embrace at a Coldplay show with his alleged coworker.

A video of a Coldplay concert embrace on a huge screen triggered rumors of an affair between the CEO and another employee, prompting the US software company Astronomer to put its CEO on leave.

In the video, which was shown on a huge screen at a Boston performance, a man and woman embrace before lowering their heads to conceal their faces. Chris Martin, the lead vocalist of Coldplay, joked that the two were either having an affair or simply extremely timid after they made an effort to hide their identities.

According to later reports, the two were executives of Astronomer, with Andy Byron, the CEO, at the center of the rumors. The placement of Mr. Byron on leave was confirmed by Astronomer on X late on Friday.

It said, “Astronomer is dedicated to the principles and culture that have guided us since our inception.” It is anticipated that our leaders will set the bar for behavior and responsibility. The formal investigation into this problem has been started by the Board of Directors, and we will have more information to offer soon.

The interim CEO was Pete DeJoy, who was also a co-founder and the Chief Product Officer.

According to numerous reports, the man in the video is Andy Byron, the CEO of Astronomer, who has been employed by the company since July 2023. His identification in the video has not been verified by Mr. Byron himself. According to web information, the woman is Kristin Cabot, the chief people officer of the corporation, who started working there in November 2024. She has also failed to provide identification.

The astronomer’s statement further stated that rumors claiming differently were untrue and that Mr. Byron had not issued a personal statement. No additional staff members were shown in the footage, it added.