Reed Hastings, Netflix’s co-founder and chairman, is stepping down from the company’s board when his term ends this summer. Hastings is stepping aside to focus on “philanthropy and other pursuits,” the company said in a statement letter to shareholders.
The departure was revealed in the company’s first-quarter earnings report released Thursday. Hastings will officially step down from the board when his term ends in June, according to the filing.
“Netflix has changed my life in so many ways, and my favorite memory was in January 2016, when we enabled nearly the entire planet to enjoy our service,” Hastings said in a statement included in the earnings report.
“My actual contribution to Netflix was not a single decision,” Hastings continued. “It was a focus on member joy, building a culture that others could inherit and improve, and building a company that could be beloved by members and highly successful for generations to come.”
The outgoing founder also thanked Ted Sarandos, the company’s CEO, and Greg Peters, its co-managing advisor.
In 1999, when mom-and-pop video rental stores still dotted the country, Hastings and Netflix co-founder Marc Randolph launched a DVD-by-mail subscription business for movies. In the coming years, Netflix would help quench many of these mom-and-pop shops (as well mega-rental chain Blockbuster), as its offerings expanded from a disc delivery service to digital delivery (the company officially retired its disc delivery service in 2023). Under Hastings’ leadership, Netflix became a pioneer in the streaming industry, inspiring a wave of similar services from the likes of Amazon, HBO, Disney, Hulu and others.
“Reed has built a culture of innovation, integrity and high performance that defines who we are today,” the company said in the earnings report. “His vision and leadership pioneered the way the world is entertained, and his legacy and impact is felt not only by all of us at Netflix, but by audiences around the world.”
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As Hastings heads for the exit, Netflix said Thursday it is looking to expand into new technological frontiers, including genetic artificial intelligence. The report also mentions the streaming giant’s recent acquisition of InterPositive, Ben Affleck’s artificial intelligence company.
The company reported revenue of $12.25 billion in the first quarter, up 16.2% from the same period last year. Netflix’s net income rose nearly 83% to $5.28 billion.
