Laurent Freixe is stepping down.
The longtime Nestlé employee, who was named CEO of the Swiss food giant last year, was replaced following the discovery of his romantic relationship with an employee.
“The departure of Laurent Freixe follows an investigation into an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate,” Nestlé confirmed in a Sept. 1 press release, “which breached Nestlé’s Code of Business Conduct.”
Chairman Paul Bulcke, who oversaw the investigation, emphasized that “this was a necessary decision.”
He added, “Nestlé’s values and governance are strong foundations of our company. I thank Laurent for his years of service at Nestlé.”
Following Freixe’s exit, which was decided with “the support of independent outside counsel,” the company announced that Philipp Navratil will take over the position.
“Philipp is recognized for his impressive track record of achieving results in challenging environments,” Bulcke added. “The Board is confident that he will drive our growth plans forward and accelerate efficiency efforts.”
Despite Nestlé’s controversy, the chairman emphasized, “We are not changing course on strategy and we will not lose pace on performance.”
E! News has reached out to reps for Freixe’s attorney and has not yet heard back.
Nestlé’s latest change comes after Freixe—who was previously named CEO of Zone Latin America for Nestlé in 2022—was tapped to replace then-CEO Mark Schneider in September 2024.
Freixe isn’t the only executive to make headlines for their personal relationships. BP’s former CEO Bernard Looney resigned in 2023 after less than four years in the role, after failing to disclose past relationships with colleagues.
“Mr. Looney has today informed the Company that he now accepts that he was not fully transparent in his previous disclosures,” BP shared in a September 2023 press release. “He did not provide details of all relationships and accepts he was obligated to make more complete disclosure.”
Most recently, Astronomer’s CEO Andy Byron and Chief People Officer Kristin Cabot were seen on Coldplay‘s jumbotron at a July concert, prompting the band’s frontman Chris Martin to jokingly wonder if they’re “having an affair or they’re just very shy.” Amid the controversy, both Byron and Cabot ultimately left the company.
“Andy Byron has tendered his resignation, and the Board of Directors has accepted,” Astronomer said in a statement to E! News. “The Board will begin a search for our next Chief Executive.”
For a closer look at Byron and Cabot’s scandal, keep reading.
What did Coldplay’s Chris Martin say that caused a viral scandal for former Astronomer CEO Andy Byron?
Performing at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., on July 15, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin zeroed in on two people who seemingly sprang out of each other’s arms once they saw that they were on the jumbotron.
“The way we’re going to do that is using our cameras,” Martin told the crowd beforehand. “So, if you look at the screens, we’re going to come looking and see who’s out there to say hello to.” First stop, a young man who was thrilled by an impromptu happy birthday tribute from Martin.
“Oh, look at these two,” the singer said as the camera stopped next on the cozy-looking pair. But then the man ducked and the woman, her hands in front of her face, turned her back to the camera.
“Either they’re having an affair or they’re just really shy,” Martin quipped. “I’m not quite sure what to do.”
As the woman then left her seat, disappearing past the people behind her, the singer added, “Oh s–t! I hope we didn’t do something bad.”
The moment was captured for posterity on video by concertgoer Grace Springer and, by the end of the night, internet sleuths had identified the squirrelly pair as Astronomer CEO Andy Byron and Astronomer Chief People Officer Kristin Cabot. Furthermore, as quickly deduced by TikTokers, X users, et al., Byron and Cabot are both married to other people.
Just moments afterward, Martin asked another pair who showed up on the screen, “OK, listen, are you two a couple? Are you two a legitimate couple?”
Who are Andy Byron and Kristin Cabot?
Byron and Cabot are now-former coworkers who were spotted together at a Coldplay concert and became the talk of the internet. Neither has made any public comment about the incident so far and an apology purportedly from Byron that circulated online the next day was fake, according to Astronomer.
In their respective lives, Byron was chief executive of data operations company Astronomer—which, contrary to what many assumed at first glance, has nothing to do with space—and Cabot was the firm’s head of human resources.
Astronomer confirmed July 24 to NBC News that Cabot had resigned.
Both have since deleted their LinkedIn pages and multiple outlets have reported that Byron’s wife deleted her Instagram and Facebook accounts. They reportedly share two sons.
Cabot is now estranged from Privateer Rum CEO Andrew Cabot, the sixth-generation descendant of a rum distiller of the same name dating back to the American Revolution, per multiple reports. According to the Boston Globe, Andrew traded in a career in tech to found the spirits company in 2011.
According to court docs obtained by NBC News, Kristin filed for divorce from Andrew on Aug. 13, though a spokesperson for Andrew told People that the pair were “privately and amicably separated several weeks before the Coldplay concert.” Kristin and Andrew share no children, though Andrew has two children from a previous relationship.
What is Astronomer?
Astronomer is the tech company behind Astro, an operations platform that, per the company’s website, “empowers your team to build, run, and observe data pipelines that just work, all from one place.”
The company was founded in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 2018 and also has offices in San Francisco and San Jose, Calif.
Byron joined the company as CEO in 2023 and Cabot came onboard in 2024.
They raised $93 million in a Series D funding round led by Bain Capital Ventures in May 2025, Astronomer announced at the time, per the New York Post, calling it “just one step in Astronomer’s journey to build a durable, lasting software company.”
The funding raised the firm’s valuation to $740 million, according to the Economic Times.
What did Astronomer say about Andy Byron’s viral Coldplay jumbotron moment?
Astronomer revealed in a July 18 statement that the company’s board of directors had “initiated a formal investigation into this matter” and clarified that the alleged statement making the rounds from Byron was not genuine.
“Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding,” the firm said. “Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability.”
The statement also noted that none of the other people seen in the fateful jumbotron video—aside from the pair in question—were Astronomer employees. (The company confirmed separately to the Associated Press that Cabot was the woman with Byron in the video.)
Is Andy Byron still CEO of Astronomer after the Coldplay jumbotron scandal?
Byron was on leave from Astronomer as of July 18, according to co-founder and Chief Product Officer Pete DeJoy, who was named interim CEO, and then the company announced his resignation the next day.
“Andy Byron has tendered his resignation, and the Board of Directors has accepted,” Astronomer said in a statement to E! News. “The Board will begin a search for our next Chief Executive,” the statement added, noting DeJoy would continue in his new compounded role.
“The events of the past few days have received a level of media attention that few companies—let alone startups in our small corner of the data and AI world—ever encounter,” DeJoy wrote in a July 21 LinkedIn post. “The spotlight has been unusual and surreal for our team and, while I would never have wished for it to happen like this, Astronomer is now a household name.”
What has Coldplay’s Chris Martin said about the jumbotron “affair” scandal?
Martin couldn’t even begin to try to fix what happened, but he’s had some fun with it since.
During the first Coldplay show since the scandal July 19, the English singer once again advised the crowd at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisc., that some of them might end up on the big screen.
“So please,” Martin said, “if you haven’t done your makeup, do your makeup now.”
