Activision Blizzard exec leaves to join Bored Ape NFT creators Yuga Labs

Activision Blizzard COO Daniel Alegre announced he’s stepping down to join Yuga Labs in 2023, home of popular Bored Ape and CryptoPunk NFTs.

Daniel Alegre’s run as both the President and Chief Operating Officer of Activision Blizzard is coming to an end.

Alegre announced that at the end of Q1 2023, he’ll be stepping down from the company he’s worked at for only two years.

After stepping down from ActiBlizz, he’ll be joining the world of Web3 as the head of Yuga Labs.

Activision COO stepping down for NFT company

Alegre will serve as the CEO of Yuga Labs, which is the parent company of Bored Ape Yacht Club and CryptoPunks NFTs.

In his announcement, Alegre said:” I am very proud of the exceptional work and dedication the teams at Activision, Blizzard, and King have brought to our world’s players over my three years here at the company.”

@YugaLabs — home of @boredapeyc, @othersidemeta, @cryptopunksnfts, and more — is a creative powerhouse driving innovation and storytelling in Web3. I am extremely excited to lead the team to the next phase of growth. https://t.co/hS6O9DKhUT

— Daniel Alegre (@dalegre) December 19, 2022

In Yuga’s own announcement, the company praised him as a “seasoned, visionary executive who shares our passion for innovation and creativity,” and lauded his “vast experience scaling media and gaming companies.”

Specifically, Yuga pointed to the company’s success with games like World of Warcraft, Diablo, Overwatch, and Call of Duty.

Alegre will almost certainly exit the company ahead of its acquisition by Microsoft, which still has no official date.

With the loss of its COO and impending absorption into Microsoft’s ecosystem, Activision Blizzard continues to be a company in major flux.