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Microsoft AI scientists, from left: Zalán Borsos, Marco Tagliasacchi and Matthias Minderer. (LinkedIn Photos)
— Microsoft hired three former members of Google DeepMind, which was originally co-founded as a startup research lab by Microsoft’s current CEO of AI, Mustafa Suleyman.
Joining Microsoft AI to open a new Zurich office are Zalán Borsos and Marco Tagliasacchi, who specialize in AI audio technologies; and Matthias Minderer, a computer vision specialist, according to LinkedIn posts from each of the new hires.
Tagliasacchi and Borsos were previously involved in the creation of Google’s Audio Overviews feature for its NotebookLM AI tool, Windows Central reports. Suleyman joined Microsoft a year ago along with other leaders and researchers from his more recent startup, Inflection AI. Microsoft is making a push into consumer AI initiatives through its Copilot chatbot and related technologies, with features including a daily audio news summary.
Mike Fridgen, chief operating officer for Rover. (LinkedIn Photo)
— Mike Fridgen is now chief operating officer for Rover, the Seattle-based pet sitting platform. Fridgen was the managing director of Madrona Venture Labs (MVL) for more than nine years, and remains a part-time Madrona venture partner. He was previously president and CEO of Decide, a Seattle-based online shopping and comparison service that eBay acquired in 2013.
Fridgen’s move was announced last week alongside the news that the startup accelerator operations performed by MVL would be taken over by Madrona.
— Melissa Fisher shared that she is leaving her role as chief financial officer at Seattle’s Outreach to “take some time off and explore new horizons.” Fisher was previously CFO of California’s Qualys.
Outreach, which helps companies streamline and automate their sales processes, has seen multiple rounds of layoffs, most recently cutting 9% of its workforce in November. In January the company added two leaders to its C-suite: Chief Revenue Officer Nadia Rashid and Chief Marketing Officer Holly Simmons.
Naseem Tuffaha, chief business officer for Pearson. (LinkedIn Photo)
— Longtime Microsoft executive Naseem Tuffaha is chief business officer for Pearson, a London education company serving children and adult learners and employees. He will be based in Seattle.
Tuffaha said on LinkedIn that when he realized Pearson is working “to reinvent learning in the age of AI, I saw the opportunity to be part of something meaningful that would transform lives around the world.”
Tuffaha left Microsoft in 2022 as a vice president of worldwide modern work solutions sales to take a role with the online advertising platform The Trade Desk.
— Costco’s Richard Galanti has retired from both his role as executive vice president and from the Costco board of directors, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Galanti was the Issaquah-based retail giant’s chief financial officer from October 1993 until March 2024.
TiE Seattle’s new board members Brianna McDonald, left, and Suresh Kotha. (LinkedIn Photos)
— TiE Seattle, a local chapter of the nonprofit organization supporting entrepreneurs, appointed two new board members: Brianna McDonald and Suresh Kotha.
McDonald was a charter member of TiE Seattle. For 19 years she has been a general partner with McDonald Ventures, which provides professional services to startups and fund managers, and is engaged with other investment and entrepreneurial organizations.
Kotha has been a professor with the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business for nearly three decades and is the research director for the Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship. Kotha also holds a named chair at the UW.
Starfire Sports’ new member of its board of directors, Rhonda Lewis. (LinkedIn Photo)
— Starfire Sports, an organization providing after school programs to underserved youth in South Seattle, welcomed to its board of directors Rhonda Lewis, chief of staff for King County Council District 2.
Lewis has spent her career as a public servant, working for the city of Tukwila and in King County agencies. Starfire opened 20 years ago and has a renowned soccer program. In 2019 it launched vocational STEM education offerings.
— Ross Kenyon, co-founder of the now-shuttered carbon removal startup Nori, is an advisor with Acadia, a carbon emissions compliance platform. Seattle-based Kenyon is providing mentorship and other support to multiple climate-related endeavors in the U.S.
