Spotify co-founder Daniel Ek is stepping down as CEO, a major shift for the audio streaming giant he has led for nearly two decades. The company announced that starting January 1, 2026, Ek will become the Executive Chairman. He will be replaced by two long-time executives, Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström, who will act as co-CEOs. 1
- Leadership Transition: Daniel Ek is stepping down as CEO to become Executive Chairman, with Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström becoming co-CEOs on January 1, 2026, aiming for a smooth handover as Ek focuses on long-term strategy.
- Investment Controversy: Backlash has arisen from Ek's investment in military AI company Helsing, sparking boycotts and ethical concerns among artists and users due to its association with warfare.
- Future Challenges: The new co-CEOs face the challenge of balancing financial growth with repairing strained relationships with artists and users amidst competition and integrating AI, requiring them to rebuild trust within the creative community.
Spotify presents this as a planned transition that has been in the works for years. The company recently achieved its first full year of profitability and has grown to over 700 million users. However, this leadership change comes as Ek faces intense criticism. His personal investments in a military AI company have sparked a boycott from artists and users, adding a layer of controversy to the story.
This article breaks down the official story, the controversy driving the backlash, and what this change means for Spotify’s future.
The Official Plan: A Strategic Handover
Spotify’s announcement on September 30, 2025, framed the leadership change as the final step in a long-term plan. Ek stated that the move “simply matches titles to how we already operate,” noting that Söderström and Norström have been leading much of the company’s day-to-day operations since 2023. 2
In his new role as Executive Chairman, Ek says he will focus on the “long arc” of the company. This includes long-term strategy, how money is allocated, and regulatory issues. He described it as a “European-style” chairman role, which is more hands-on than a typical US chairman position. The new co-CEOs will continue to report to him.
The new leaders are Spotify veterans:
- Gustav Söderström, the current Co-President and Chief Product and Technology Officer, has been with Spotify since 2009. He is credited with shaping the platform’s product and technology strategy. 3
- Alex Norström, the current Co-President and Chief Business Officer, joined in 2011. He has been responsible for the company’s subscriber and advertising businesses, content deals, and global expansion.
The co-CEO model is used by other large tech companies like Netflix and Oracle to manage complex global operations. For Spotify, it splits leadership between the product and business sides of the company. Despite the company’s assurances of a smooth transition, Spotify’s stock dropped by more than 3-4% in premarket trading after the announcement. 4
Spotify Deletes 75 Million Spam Tracks in Massive AI Music Crackdown
The Controversy: Ek’s Investment in Military AI
While Spotify’s official statements focus on strategy, a major unspoken factor is the backlash against Daniel Ek’s personal investments. In 2021, Ek launched an investment firm called Prima Materia, pledging $1 billion to fund European tech companies.
One of its biggest investments is in Helsing, a German-French defense tech company.
- In 2021, Prima Materia made an initial investment of €100 million.
- In June 2025, Ek’s firm led a €600 million funding round that resulted in him becoming Helsing’s chairman.
Helsing develops AI-powered software and hardware for military use. Its products include AI platforms for battlefield analysis and combat drones like the HF-1 and HX-2 “kamikaze” drones, thousands of which have been sent to Ukraine. The company is also developing autonomous underwater drones and a full-scale combat drone called the CA-1 Europa. 5
Ek has defended his investment as a way to support Europe’s “technological sovereignty” and protect democratic values. However, critics point out that Ek has sold hundreds of millions of dollars in Spotify stock to fund these ventures, creating a financial link between the streaming service and the defense industry.
Community Revolt: Artists and Users Push Back
Ek’s involvement with Helsing has caused a significant backlash from the music community, which was already frustrated with Spotify’s low royalty payments.
The Artist Boycott
A growing number of artists have pulled their music from Spotify in protest.
- Indie rock band Deerhoof was one of the first, stating, “We don’t want our music killing people”.
- Australian rock band King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard also removed their music, urging fans to “put pressure on these Dr. Evil tech bros to do better”.
- In September 2025, British trip-hop group Massive Attack became the first major-label artist to leave the platform. They said the “economic burden that has long been placed on artists is now compounded by a moral and ethical burden”. 6
This controversy amplified long-standing complaints about artist pay. Musicians have criticized Spotify’s model, which pays an estimated $0.003 to $0.005 per stream. In 2024, Spotify also introduced a policy requiring a track to get at least 1,000 streams in a year to earn any royalties, which critics say hurts emerging artists. The United Musicians and Allied Workers union labeled Ek a “warmonger who pays artists poverty wages”. 7
User Feedback and Division
The backlash extends to Spotify users, though opinions are divided.
- On Spotify’s community forums and Reddit, many users announced they were canceling their premium subscriptions. One user wrote, “I can not support you for longer if my money is invested in Warfare and unethical purposes”. Another said, “it’s not cool to use money from music and spend it on war machines!!!”.
- However, other users support Ek’s investment. One person posted, “Thank you, Daniel Ek, for supporting our western democracies and values with your investments,” and said they switched to Spotify because of it.
This ethical debate is happening alongside growing user frustration with the platform itself. Some users on Reddit have complained about a decline in the app’s quality and stability, linking it to the layoff of 1,500 employees in late 2023. One researcher called the Helsing controversy a “tipping point” that combined years of frustration over low pay with new ethical concerns.
What’s Next for Spotify?
The new co-CEOs, Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström, face a major challenge. They must continue to deliver financial growth while trying to repair the company’s relationship with artists and users.
Their agenda will include competing with giants like Apple Music and YouTube Music, expanding into new markets in Asia and Africa, and integrating AI further into the platform. However, the push for AI is complicated. While Spotify sees it as a tool for innovation, many artists and users are concerned about AI-generated music and the ethics of AI in warfare.
Ultimately, the success of this new leadership may depend on their ability to rebuild trust. As Daniel Ek moves to a role focused on long-term strategy, Söderström and Norström must address the immediate crisis of confidence. They will need to show the creative community that Spotify values them as partners, not just as content providers. This transition is more than a change in leadership, it’s a critical moment that will define Spotify’s future and its place in the creative world.
- https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/sep/30/daniel-ek-spotify-founder-ceo-steps-down ↩︎
- https://uproxx.com/music/spotify-daniel-ek-step-down-ceo/ ↩︎
- https://investors.spotify.com/governance/board-of-directors/person-details/default.aspx?ItemId=77edc21c-7c77-4cd5-9079-e27f7cd54288 ↩︎
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2025/09/30/spotify-shares-dip-4-after-founder-daniel-ek-exits-as-ceo/ ↩︎
- https://www.eplaneai.com/news/prototype-of-ai-enabled-ca-1-europa-drone-unveiled-in-germany ↩︎
- https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/sep/18/massive-attack-remove-music-from-spotify-to-protest-ceo-daniel-eks-investment-in-ai-military ↩︎
- https://www.recordingfund.org/articles/spotify-has-a-new-payment-model ↩︎
