Indian-origin Shantanu Narayan is leaving the post of CEO of Adobe. He was handling this responsibility for the last 18 years. Shantanu has given this information in a memo sent to the employees. However, he will not step down immediately. He will remain CEO until the board completes the search for his successor. After this he will continue his services as Chairman of the Board. The company’s revenue reached ₹ 2.31 lakh crore in 18 years. Shantanu Narayan took charge of Adobe in 2007. At the time, Adobe was primarily a company selling boxed software such as Photoshop and Acrobat. At that time the company’s revenue was less than $ 1 billion (about Rs 9,200 crore) and there were only 3,000 employees. Shantanu shifted the company from the traditional license model to a ‘subscription first’ model. Earlier people used to buy CD or license of software like Photoshop by paying huge money. Shantanu changed it to be like Netflix. That means now you have to pay fees every month or year to use the software. This small change increased the company’s earnings manifold. Today Adobe’s annual revenue is around Rs 2.31 lakh crore and more than 30,000 people work in the company. During his tenure, the company’s shares have increased by more than 6 times. Revenue of AI products increased 3 times, quarterly results better than expected. In the first quarter (October-December) of FY 2026, Adobe’s revenue increased by 12% to $ 6.40 billion, which is more than the market estimate of $ 6.28 billion. The special thing is that the company’s income from AI-based products like Firefly has increased 3 times compared to last year. The total number of monthly users of the company has also increased by 17% to 85 crores. This was the 100th earnings call of Shantanu’s tenure. The board started the search for a new CEO. The company’s board has formed a special committee to search for a new CEO. It will be headed by Independent Director Frank Calderoni. Narayan said during the earnings call that this entire process may take a few months. He said that I will create the same support system for the next CEO as John and Chuck had created for me before me. Breakdown of Figma deal was a shock, AI increased the challenge. There were some challenges in Shantanu’s journey. Adobe had tried to buy design tool ‘Figma’ for $20 billion, but the deal was canceled due to regulatory hurdles. Apart from this, there is pressure on Adobe’s shares in 2026 and it has fallen by about 23%. Investors fear that ‘Generative AI’ may change the traditional model of the software industry in the coming times, which will give tough competition to companies like Adobe. Shantanu said – Adobe’s best days are yet to come. Narayan, in his memo, recalled his 28-year journey with Adobe. He wrote, “When I came here, I was impressed by the work culture and desire for innovation. Together we created technology that touched the lives of billions of people. Even greater opportunities lie ahead of us in the age of AI. Adobe’s best days are yet to come.”
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Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayan will step down after 18 years: Company looking for new CEO; Made Adobe a global leader in the AI era
