Amazon’s head of world-wide corporate affairs Jay Carney, the previous White Property press secretary underneath President Obama, designed some news of his individual this 7 days, asserting that he’s leaving Amazon after extra than seven many years.

Setting up in September, Carney will come to be Airbnb’s world head of policy and communications, reporting to Brian Chesky, CEO of the journey and quick-phrase lodging market.

On this episode of the GeekWire Podcast, we’re participating in highlights from our 2019 interview with Carney at the GeekWire Summit, in which he discussed the arc of his career and his changeover from politics to the tech business.

In the past two years, in his Amazon position, Carney, has uncovered himself at odds with the positions taken by his previous boss, now President Joe Biden, on union and antitrust troubles. As you will hear, when we spoke with him at the 2019 GeekWire Summit, he was intense in his defense of Amazon.

He’ll now be making use of his expertise in tech and politics to his new purpose at Airbnb.

“The possible for journey to encourage economic and social fantastic has in no way been higher,” Carney explained in a assertion announcing his new job. “I’m thrilled to be signing up for Airbnb to help information its do the job to link communities and folks by way of journey, push economic participation, and aid us uncover that even though our distinctions are real, they are overwhelmed by our similarities.”

In the closing segment of this archival episode, you are going to also listen to his reviews at the function that drew a response from the inner circle of then-President Donald Trump and designed headlines in Washington, D.C.

Hear earlier mentioned, or subscribe to GeekWire in Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you pay attention.