Daniel Ek steps down as Spotify CEO after final earnings call
Daniel Ek has formally ended his tenure as chief executive of Spotify, closing a leadership chapter that spanned nearly two decades at the helm of the streaming company he co founded. His final appearance as CEO came during the company’s February 10 earnings call, marking the completion of a leadership transition that took effect on January 1, 2026.
Ek is handing operational control to co chief executives Gustav Söderström and Alex Norström, both long time Spotify executives who have overseen much of the company’s day to day management since 2023. The transition signals continuity at the top of the world’s largest music streaming platform, even as it enters a new phase shaped by technological change and global expansion.
During his prepared remarks, Ek outlined what he described as a framework for Spotify’s future built around three pillars: solving problems at the intersection of consumers and creators, operating fundamentally as a technology company, and making decisions that compound in value over time. He emphasized that Spotify has evolved into a technology platform for audio and increasingly for broader creator audience engagement.
Ek pointed to transformative forces such as artificial intelligence and connected devices as factors that will further redefine how people discover and consume media. He suggested that Spotify’s technological identity will become even more central as competition intensifies and user expectations shift toward personalization and seamless cross device experiences.
Although stepping down as CEO, Ek will remain closely involved with the company as executive chair of the board. In that role, he will focus on capital allocation, long term strategy and regulatory matters, in what Spotify has described as a European style chairmanship. When the leadership transition was first announced in September 2025, Ek told employees he would continue to play a significant role in shaping major strategic decisions.
The incoming co CEOs inherit a company showing strong momentum. In the fourth quarter of 2025, Spotify added 38 million monthly active users, reaching a global total of 751 million. Premium subscribers climbed to 290 million, reflecting sustained demand for paid streaming services. Revenue for the quarter reached 4.5 billion euros, while gross margin improved to 33.1 percent and operating income rose to 701 million euros.
Norström signaled that 2026 would be a year of heightened ambition, pointing to untapped opportunities in global subscription markets. Both executives have indicated they intend to deepen Spotify’s investment in artificial intelligence driven personalization and explore new monetization channels while maintaining disciplined margin expansion.
Spotify also disclosed that it paid more than 11 billion dollars to music rights holders in 2025, which it described as the largest annual payout to music creators by a distributor in history. Independent artists and labels accounted for half of total royalties distributed, underscoring the platform’s role in diversifying revenue streams across the music industry.
Looking ahead to the first quarter, Spotify projects continued moderate growth, forecasting 759 million monthly active users and 293 million premium subscribers. The leadership shift comes at a time when the streaming market is increasingly competitive, but the company’s scale, financial performance and technological investments position it for sustained influence in the evolving digital audio ecosystem.
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