Eric Schmidt is stepping down as Alphabet's executive chairman

Google's parent company, Alphabet announced that Eric Schmidt will be stepping down from his position as the executive chairman of the company and becoming a technical advisor to the company. He will continue to serve on the company's board.

Larry Page, CEO, Alphabet, said,  "Since 2001, Eric has provided us with business and engineering expertise and a clear vision about the future of technology. Continuing his 17 years of service to the company, he’ll now be helping us as a technical advisor on science and technology issues. I’m incredibly excited about the progress our companies are making, and about the strong leaders who are driving that innovation."

Eric Schmidt joined Google as CEO in 2001 and became its executive chairman 10 years later. He maintained that role when Google restructured to become Alphabet in 2015.

After ten years as CEO and seven as Executive Chairman, I can’t wait to dive into the latest in science, technology, and philanthropy. I look forward to working with Larry and Sergey on our future here at Alphabet. https://t.co/nVnZqMEHoI

— Eric Schmidt (@ericschmidt) December 21, 2017

In his new role, he'll likely advise the company's urban development arm, Sidewalk Labs, its deep learning efforts, and its healthcare spin-offs, Verily and Calico. Alphabet expects that the board will appoint a new, non-executive chairman at its next meeting.