Yuga Labs’ current CEO, Nicole Muniz, is dropping down from her role to leave room for Activision Blizzard’s COO, Daniel Alegre, in 2023
Departing executive and COO of Activision Blizzard, Daniel Alegre, will be crowned Yuga Labs‘ next CEO in the new year.
Quick Take:
- Alegre will replace Yuga Labs’ current CEO, Nicole Muniz, in the first half of 2023.
- This new leadership is to boost Yuga Labs’ gaming innovation.
- Nicole Muniz will remain a strategic advisor and partner on the team.
The Need for New Leadership
Yuga Labs, the hub of the world’s-famous OG NFT collections, CryptoPunks, and Bored Ape Yacht Club, among others, is looking for new innovative ways to keep its NFT and metaverse products at the forefront of the digital realm.
To achieve such goals, it is switching up its leadership ladder, bringing in Alegre to take over Muniz’s spot as CEO.
Following leading Activision Blizzard since early 2020, Alegre has dipped his toes into well-known brands, including World of Warcraft, Call of Duty, Overwatch, Diablo, and Candy Crush. He has also spent 16 years across several leadership roles at Google.
Having vast experience in the gaming and tech sectors, the current team behind Yuga Labs believes Alegre is the perfect fit for adding more value to the Web3 giant’s metaverse and digital collectibles—regardless of already selling many NFTs for more than six figures.
Controversy Behind the Switch of Roles
Interestingly, Alegre’s new career move came to light less than two weeks after the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced a lawsuit to stop Microsoft from acquiring Activision Blizzard for a substantial $69 billion.
Initially announced in January, the plan behind the deal was for the world’s largest computer software vendor to expand on innovation by diving into the metaverse with help from the team behind one of the most reputable gaming firms, Activision Blizzard.
However, after long-anticipated hype, the FCC stopped Microsoft from making such moves. Consequently, Alegre looked for other exciting opportunities at the last minute, signing a filing on December 16, 2022, to state his departure from the video game holding company.
What’s Next?
Alegre is now preparing to take the helm of Yuga Labs in the first half of 2023.
The company’s CEO since day-dot, Nicole Muniz, will climb down the ladder and become a strategic advisor and partner on the team.
Apparently, Alegre will use Mutant Ape Yacht Club #3850 as his new profile picture (PFP) once his CEO leadership role is firmly in place—so keep an eye out!
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