Nadella says Microsoft will "always" invest in gaming
Mar 9th 2026
In an internal Q&A with new Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella affirmed a long-term commitment to gaming, highlighted Project Helix and acknowledged the division still faces key business and execution challenges.
- Satya Nadella told Xbox staff Microsoft is "long on gaming" and will continue to invest in the space.
- The Q&A was hosted by incoming Xbox CEO Asha Sharma after longtime head Phil Spencer retired.
- Microsoft unveiled Project Helix, a planned Xbox-Windows hybrid console developed in partnership with AMD.
- Nadella said gaming has driven technical advances across cloud, Windows and GPU acceleration.
- He urged the team to retain current players while expanding where and how people play games.
- Nadella and Sharma acknowledged Xbox still faces marketing, exclusivity, hardware and strategy challenges.