Nest founder and former Apple executive Tony Fadell, who championed the iPod before starting home-automation company Nest is leaving his CEO role at the company, which is now owned by Alphabet (formerly Google). In a statement, Fadell claims he began discussions with Google about his “next endeavor” last year, and will move into an advisory role to Alphabet CEO Larry Page, turning over the keys at Nest to former Motorola Home and Charter cable executive Marwan Fawaz.
In announcing his departure from Nest some two years after it was bought by Google, Fadell noted that “I don’t like to do ‘maintenance mode,'” suggesting that Nest’s principle products — the Nest Learning Thermostat, Nest Cam (formerly Dropcam), and the Next Protect smoke detector will not be as actively developed as before, though he also said he was leaving the company with “a two-year roadmap.” Fadell intends to focus more on some of the startup companies that he is involved with, such as the venture-funded Actev Motors electric go-kart company.
