Spotify founder Daniel Ek to step down as CEO in 2026

Investing.com -- Spotify (NYSE: SPOT) announced Tuesday that founder Daniel Ek will transition from Chief Executive Officer to Executive Chairman effective January 1, 2026.

The music streaming giant will implement a co-CEO structure, promoting current co-Presidents Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström to lead the company. Both executives have been with Spotify for more than 15 years and will report to Ek while joining the company’s Board of Directors, pending shareholder approval.

This leadership change formalizes an operational structure that has been in place since 2023, with the co-presidents already handling strategic development and day-to-day operations. In his new role, Ek will focus on capital allocation and long-term planning while providing guidance to senior leadership.

"Over the last few years, I’ve turned over a large part of the day-to-day management and strategic direction of Spotify to Alex and Gustav – who have shaped the company from our earliest days and are now more than ready to guide our next phase," Ek said. "This change simply matches titles to how we already operate."

Woody Marshall, Lead Independent Director of Spotify’s Board, expressed confidence in the new leadership arrangement, noting that the Board has been planning this transition for several years.

The co-CEOs released a joint statement saying, "While we bring different experiences and perspectives to the CEO role, we both have a strong bias to action and can’t wait to get started knowing that we will have Daniel’s full partnership and ongoing support."

Spotify shares fell 4% following the announcement, which coincided with Goldman Sachs downgrading the stock from Buy to Neutral.

The Goldman Sachs analyst still sees solid growth opportunities for Spotify, projecting a mid-teens percentage consolidated revenue growth rate over the next 3-4 years. This growth is expected to be driven by Premium price increases, new pricing tiers, user growth, and advertising revenue acceleration beyond 2026.

Despite these positive factors, Goldman Sachs views the risk/reward balance as neutral at current share prices, suggesting much of the anticipated growth is already reflected in Spotify’s valuation.

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