Global software leader Adobe has appointed company insider Anil Chakravarthy as its new president and chief executive officer. Effective December 1, he steps into the top role to succeed outgoing chief Shantanu Narayen, who is transitioning to executive chair following an eighteen-year tenure at the helm.

Who Is Adobe New CEO Anil Chakravarthy?

Before taking over the executive position, Chakravarthy served as president of Adobe’s customer experience orchestration business and worldwide field operations. He joined Adobe in January 2020 after previously serving as chief executive officer of enterprise cloud data management firm Informatica. An Indian-origin tech executive, he holds a computer science degree from IIT Varanasi and completed his master’s and PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Shantanu Narayen announced earlier this year his intention to step down from the top executive post. The board unanimously selected Chakravarthy to steer the organization through its next phase of enterprise software growth, specifically accelerating its focus on artificial intelligence applications and agentic software solutions.

The incoming chief executive will focus on driving market leadership across creative, productivity, and customer experience portfolios. Under his recent guidance, Adobe launched AI-centered platforms including GenStudio and expanded its enterprise reach, positioning the company to compete strongly against evolving market rivals in the generative AI era.

This executive handover marks a seamless transition for the global tech giant as it navigates structural shifts in software development. With Narayen serving as executive chair to assist the transition, Chakravarthy assumes full leadership responsibility for driving Adobe’s future corporate strategy and AI integration.