Andy Byron, the CEO of Astronomer, resigned after a viral Coldplay concert video caused controversy

Andy Byron, the CEO of Astronomer, resigned after a widely shared concert video showed him hugging a coworker in front of the audience.

After a viral video of him hugging a female coworker at a Coldplay performance went viral, the CEO of a US technology company quit.

The data platform company Astronomer, headquartered in New York, said in a statement on Saturday that Andy Byron has resigned as CEO, saying, “Andy Byron has tendered his resignation, and the Board of Directors has accepted.”

The incident happened at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, during a Coldplay show. A brief video showed a guy and a woman cuddling and swaying to the music before swiftly scurrying away when they came into view on the jumbo screen at the venue.

The two were revealed to be married Astronomer chief people officer Kristin Cabot and Byron.

Chris Martin, the leader of Coldplay, said from the stage, “Either they’re having an affair, or they’re just very shy,” which further heightened the scene.

The humorous comment fueled internet rumors, as the video quickly amassed millions of views on social media.

In the days that followed, Astronomer started an internal inquiry into the connection and put Mr. Byron 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 statement. Our leaders are supposed to set the bar for responsibility and behavior, yet recently, they failed to do so.

According to Astronomer, the company’s chief product officer is presently acting as temporary CEO while the board has started the process of finding a new CEO.

The episode has sparked a lot of online discussion about CEO conduct in the era of viral videos, professional relationships, and privacy in public places.