The CEO of code review platform provider Snyk has announced he will stand down so the company can find someone better-equipped to steer the company into the age of AI.
“This is a deeply emotional decision. I love this business, I hold this team dear, and my conviction in our mission has never been higher,” CEO Peter McKay wrote on Thursday. “But after much contemplation—and with the full support of our Board—I believe the right path forward for Snyk’s next decade is to bring in a leader with deep roots in product innovation and AI.”
McKay pointed to his achievements as CEO – winning 4,800 customers and $325 million in annual revenue – and the company’s “monumental pivot to become the leader in AI-native security.”
He suggested those successes beg the question of why he thinks it’s time to leave.
“The answer is simple: The opportunity ahead of us is even greater than what’s behind us,” he wrote. “Snyk is entering ‘Part Two’ – an era of hyper-intensive AI innovation. This next chapter requires a visionary, AI-immersed leader ready to commit their full energy to a multi-year journey of technical disruption.”
And presumably somebody who is happy playing buzzword bingo.
McKay used another buzzword – “resilience” – to describe Snyk.
“My goal has always been to create an organization so strong that it can thrive beyond any one individual, including me,” he wrote. “For the long-term success of our customers and shareholders, the right thing to do is to find a successor who lives and breathes the technical frontier of this new era.”
McKay said he intends to remain “a significant shareholder and Snyk’s #1 cheerleader.”
No pressure for the new leader, then, given their efforts will determine McKay’s net worth.
The outgoing boss said he will remain “fully engaged” until his replacement starts work.
Few CEOs leave at a time of their choosing, without having a new job lined up already, or after admitting they’re no longer right for the job. McKay’s exit is therefore unusually clean. ®
