Microsoft Enhances Leadership with Former Meta Engineering Head

Microsoft Enhances Leadership with Former Meta Engineering Head Microsoft Corp has appointed Jay Parikh as a senior executive, joining the senior leadership team and reporting directly to CEO Satya Nadella. In a blog post, Nadella expressed enthusiasm about Parikh’s addition, highlighting his impressive background as the former global head of engineering at Meta (formerly Facebook), where he focused on technical infrastructure and data center projects since 2009. Parikh also held the CEO position at Lacework, a cloud security firm, but specifics about his new role at Microsoft have not been disclosed.

Nadella praised Parikh’s extensive experience in building and scaling technical teams for both commercial and consumer markets, noting his involvement in significant projects such as Meta’s subsea cable initiative, which connects various points on the ocean floor through fiber-optic cables, and the Aquila drone project, an experimental solar-powered drone designed to provide internet access to remote regions—though this project ultimately failed due to strong winds and software issues.

With a strong background at Akamai and Ning, Parikh brings valuable connections within the startup and venture capital ecosystems, which Nadella believes will enhance Microsoft’s perspective. Nadella also mentioned his long-standing admiration for Parikh as a technology leader dedicated to innovation and operational excellence. According to a Bloomberg report, Microsoft is currently facing challenges in bringing data centers online to meet the increasing demand for its AI products.

Microsoft Enhances Leadership with Former Meta Engineering Head Jay Parikh is set to join Microsoft’s senior leadership team, reporting directly to CEO Satya Nadella. Microsoft, currently facing challenges in rapidly launching data centers to meet the demand for its artificial intelligence products, has hired Parikh, who previously played a key role in maintaining Facebook’s infrastructure.

Nadella highlighted Parikh’s unique expertise in guiding teams through significant growth to support major internet businesses in an internal email shared on the company blog. Most recently, Parikh served as the head of engineering at Lacework, a cloud security startup, and before that, he led engineering at Facebook, now known as Meta Platforms Inc. Details about Parikh’s specific role at Microsoft will be revealed in the coming months, according to Nadella.

Having joined Facebook in 2009, Parikh spent over ten years there, contributing to technical infrastructure and data center initiatives that helped the company become the largest social network globally. Under his leadership, Meta established numerous data centers worldwide, while many other tech firms shifted away from owning data centers to using cloud services from providers like Microsoft and Amazon.

Parikh also directed various significant projects at Meta, including subsea cable installations and the now-defunct Aquila drone initiative designed to deliver wireless internet to rural areas in the U.S.

Microsoft, which has its own subsea cable and data center projects, is increasingly emphasizing infrastructure developments that enhance the efficiency and capability of its network. With the help of its partnership with OpenAI, Microsoft is leading the charge in creating tools based on generative artificial intelligence. However, the company has projected slower growth for its Azure cloud business as it struggles to expedite the opening of new data centers to meet rising demand.