Asha Sharma

Last updated
Asha Sharma
Born1989 (age 3637)
Other namesAMRAHSAHSA (gamertag)
Education
OccupationBusiness executive
Employer Microsoft (2011–2013, 2024–present)
TitleEVP & CEO of Microsoft Gaming (2026–present)
Board member of Coupang (2024–present)
The Home Depot (2025–present)

Asha Sharma (born 1989) is an American business executive who serves as Executive Vice President (EVP) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Microsoft Gaming. She succeeded Phil Spencer on February 23, 2026. Previously, Sharma served as President of Microsoft's CoreAI product. [1]

Contents

Early life

Sharma was born in Racine, Wisconsin. While she was a student at the University of Minnesota, Sharma launched and led a center for at-risk teenagers called the A-list in Brooklyn Park. When she departed that leadership role, the center closed. [2]

Career

Sharma began her career at S.C. Johnson at the age of 17. [3] After earning a degree in business from the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management, she joined the marketing department at Microsoft in 2011, before joining the startup home services company Porch in 2013. She remained at Porch into 2017 as their Chief Operating Officer. [4]

After departing Porch, she joined Facebook as VP Product & Engineering for their Messenger and Instagram Direct products. Following this role, she served as COO of Instacart. [5]

She is currently also serving as a board member at Coupang and The Home Depot. She previously served as a board member at Porch, Seattle Foundation, and Virginia Mason Medical Center. [6] [7] [8]

Sharma returned to Microsoft in 2024 to serve as President of the CoreAI division. [9] Following two years in this role, Sharma was selected to replace the retiring head of Microsoft Gaming, Phil Spencer, in February 2026. Her selection came as a surprise, passing over Spencer's second in command Sarah Bond. Sharma's history in user acquisition was a primary motivator for her selection, as Xbox has seen declining console sales over recent years. [10]

Personal life

Sharma is a second-degree black belt in taekwondo. She has one son. [11] Sharma posted in 2026 that she had recently begun playing video games under the gamertag AMRAHSAHSA to "learn and understand" the games industry. [12]

References

  1. McCaffrey, Ryan (2026-02-20). "Phil Spencer Retiring, Sarah Bond Out, Matt Booty Promoted as Microsoft AI Exec Asha Sharma Named New Xbox Boss – EXCLUSIVE". IGN.
  2. "Sunday conversation with Asha Sharma of Porch, an online home services portal". Minnesota Star Tribune. 2015-09-05.
  3. Gesenhues, Amy (2014-07-02). "Get To Know: Porch.com CMO Asha Sharma". martech.
  4. "Sunday conversation with Asha Sharma of Porch, an online home services portal". Minnesota Star Tribune. 2015-09-05.
  5. Bishop, Todd (2026-02-23). "Who is Asha Sharma? A closer look at Microsoft's surprise pick to lead the Xbox business". Geekwire.
  6. Inference, Market. "Coupang Appoints Asha Sharma to Board". marketinference.com. Retrieved 2026-02-22.
  7. "Home Depot nominates Microsoft AI exec to board". HBS Dealer. Archived from the original on 2025-04-08. Retrieved 2026-02-22.
  8. Bishop, Todd (2026-02-23). "Who is Asha Sharma? A closer look at Microsoft's surprise pick to lead the Xbox business". Geekwire.
  9. McCaffrey, Ryan (2026-02-20). "Phil Spencer Retiring, Sarah Bond Out, Matt Booty Promoted as Microsoft AI Exec Asha Sharma Named New Xbox Boss – EXCLUSIVE". IGN.
  10. Warren, Tom (2026-02-23). "Inside Microsoft's big Xbox leadership shake-up". The Verge.
  11. Lenny Rachitsky (2025-08-28). "How 80,000 companies build with AI: Products as organisms and the death of org charts - Asha Sharma" (Podcast).
  12. Sharma, Asha [@asha_shar] (2026-02-23). "I also didn't expect my gamertag to blowup and the reality is more boring. I created it recently to learn and understand this world. I've played with my family, and it's a shared home account across devices (which you can see in the range of games /achievements). Fixed that this weekend and everyone is only playing on their own GTs" (Tweet) via Twitter.